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Whether you are a parent or whether you are a teacher, the opening chapters of this book have got you and your children started on Mind Mapping. You have found that they – your children, or child, have become more creative, now study faster and more effectively, remember better, save time and see the ‘whole picture’. You agree that these reasons are absolutely huge benefits for them – and indirectly, for you.

A Mind Map has accelerated your kids’ learning and has got them to use their whole brain. It has worked in tandem with your brain and your child’s brain by using colour, images, symbols, curved lines, words, space, associations and connections to get their thought processes to flow. Children benefit from this kind of learning as it allows them to practice using their imagination and learn about things that are of interest to them, thus giving them ownership of what they are learning about.

The process of Mind mapping has evoked the best of responses from children and from their parents on account of all this. The children’s responses were literally enacted by them, through their facial expression. Parents commented that even their younger children were talking a great deal more about learning and school work at home.

All children like colourful things and love to draw. Mind Map is a fun activity for young children. And when children like to write Mind Maps, their brains learn to like it as well. The immediate result, as discussed in Chapter 1, is improved memory. The skills required in Mind Mapping can be applied to study and allows studying to be fun, as discussed in Chapter 3.

Now take a look at colour and images, symbols and use of icons, curved lines, and words

and creative space in general, as used on the Mind Map.

How children use image and graphics

You have given your child a topic. We would have to take an example at this point, and a case study. A history lesson to a six year old could have mentioned the Taj Mahal. As mentioned earlier, children love drawing. A child could symbolise the mausoleum by outlining any building shape. Another child who thinks that exact is best, could adapt it to the shape of the Taj Mahal. Yet another innovative six-year-old would save on time by cutting out a picture of the Taj Mahal from a picture book or magazine.

The three children have set the focus of the Mind Map in the centre and in their own, very individual ways. They have made decisions on how to draw or find the necessary picture. The child who cut out the picture used her fine motor skills to wield the scissors, as did the other two who drew and painted while handling a pencil and paint brush. The image of the Taj Mahal formed in the creative right brain hemispheres of all three. Tiny, accurate electrical impulses formed in the grey matter of these right hemispheres and raced through the cell axons to connect with the organizational centres on the same and in the left hemisphere of the children’s brains. Associations were formed between neurons in the children’s brain and nerve centres further down in their body systems. They sent messages to get their fine finger muscles working.

The children would go on to make dozens of images and words separately, and image labels. They would go on to perpetrate the pattern of associations which had begun in their brains.

They have looked up books in the library to be able to see what the emperor and empress who are buried in the Taj Mahal look like. Chances are, that they used cut-outs of their images to be able to portray a better likeness. They associated thoughts such as romance and marriage, death of the empress and loss. They picked up the idea of the greatest mausoleum of all times, of architectural finesse and may have wished to know about more members of the royal family.

The main theme was surrounded by interesting facets of information connected to it. The connections were make on paper with lines leading from the main theme to these pieces of pictorial and worded information. These were attached because the brain works by association, and if the lines are attached, the ideas will internally be similarly “attached.”

None of the children had to deal with a wall of hard, dry facts. They have found and associated what they were looking for. They also want to look for more, in the future. They may want to do a Mughal genealogical chart. It was fun for them and they sought and handled enlivening information. The have only to ‘see’ the little pictures on the Mind Map and the overall picture from their memory to recall the facts connected to the Taj Mahal. They look forward to history revision before a class examination.

The Taj Mahal Mind Map, like all Mind Maps, commenced in the centre because this reflects the many-hooked nature of the brain’s thinking processes, and allows more space and freedom for ideas to develop from the central core. Use of hand drawn or researched images by children fit in with the saying “a picture is worth a thousand words.” Original and borrowed pictures are applied here to boost both memory and creativity.

Illustrator: Portray Taj Mahal Mind Map. Should be hand drawn by child

You and your children know by now that Mind Maps can be drawn free-hand, or they can be made by inputs fed to Mind Map software on children’s computers and they can be printed. The computerized version has the advantage of quickly searching for images, making and printing the diagram. Some of the Mind Mapping software store images in a clip organizer and help users to select an image appropriate for the subject on hand. The disadvantage is that it detracts from children’s creativity. A computer printout is bound to appear too tidy, too organized. It’s size is limited to regular A4 printout paper. Children, on the other hand, have much more freedom through freehand drawings and pasted pictures on a sheet of chart paper.

Another consideration while on the topic of images for Mind Maps, is the overall image or Mind Map design. As with any diagram which investigates a single main topic, older children such as those closer to thirteen years of age, can move on to star and spider diagrams. Younger ones still prefer the freedom of freehand placing, drawing and joining.

Children who are ten years of age and above find that the star format provides methods that help develop their study skills still further. Taking notes, reading, doing homework and even parrot-mugging can be noted along the end points of the star.

On the other hand, if the topic involves investigating attributes associated with a single topic, and they then place the information like the branches of a tree, with associated information at the end points and with more associated knowledge arising from these in-between points, the children can use a spider diagram for their Mind Map. Example: Finding methods that help maturing children’s study skills (like taking notes, reading, memorizing, etc.), and investigating the factors involved in performing each of the methods.

Adding colour-coding and/or pictures to a Mind Map further increases the utility, grouping and readability of the visual display.

How children relate to colour

Educationists encourage children to use colour in their Mind Maps. Children themselves admit to being able to think better in colour. Use of colour rates among the top ten Mind Mapping tips and techniques for anybody.

IllustrationThe Mind Map Gurus point out that in a Mind Map, colour and images are not just decorative. They stimulate the child’s brain as he creates the map. On the other side are the children who are looking at a completed Mind Map, trying to figure it all out. Colour helps them to clarify associated ideas as they see the map and absorb consolidate and retain the information.

One criticism is that new Mind Map users could be intimidated by the colourful Mind Maps they see on the wall in class, in books or online. One Guru commented that a perfectly executed Mind Map may make a first-timer doubt his own ability in creating something as good. For someone like this, it has been explained that Mind Maps, especially among children, tend to grow easily and with least effort. They should not be held up as an achievement in themselves, but as a bridge to learning. Mind Maps don’t need to be works of art.

Scratch maps are those Mind Maps which have been created to do something quickly, or to develop and order ideas. The thought here is that colour can be used to group similar ideas together.

Going back to the star or spider diagrams which serve to organize and manage these ideas, children can think of lettering or an image placed on different bright coloured solid circles at the tips of the star or spider diagrams. Another idea is to support similar ideas by using different shades of the same colour in Mind Map diagrams.

Children have a profound sense of colour. They have an instinct about how colour can be best used to make the Mind Map vivid, memorable and unique to the subject and for you. Left to themselves, the six year olds would begin with coloured chart paper and progress through brightly coloured frames for the central theme. When older children require text or labelling for drawing and with drawings, they would reach for coloured felt pens.

Some tips when writing with coloured pens:

Use upper and lower case lettering, not normal handwriting. The youngest who have just started to write would proceed in the writing they are most familiar with. It does not have to be joined writing.

Write keywords on the branches.

Experiment with Horizontal (landscape) page format.

Larger sheets hold more information.

Colour makes the Mind Map memorable. In the same way that ideas were grouped by colour for star and spider diagrams, free floating ideas can be grouped by circling them in colour. The youngest of children love red. Important points might be marked with red.

Colour absolutely affects our lives and our children’s development. When colour is chosen with a purpose we create a balanced, harmonious environment where children can claim their birthright and reach their full potential.

Colour is the bright site of childhood. Children adore colours and respond to colour. However children’s response differs from adults’ reaction. As you accompany your children in their Mind Map exercises, colour should become your ally. Adults can do this by viewing their use of the language of colour correctly. Children start with a limited palette of the brightest colours from the bottom of the age ladder. They begin with red. Their choices expand and widen as they grow towards adolescence.

Colour is the first characteristic which babies and children distinguish in their environment. We are aware that children perceive only black and white colours (light and darkness). This may be true at birth, but as the months pass, the situation undergoes radical changes. First children start to distinguish red colour. Later they start to perceive other bright colours such as yellow, and progress to the others in the spectrum.

When little children begin to draw and colour, their works are bound to portray bright colours. Toddlers themselves tend to be attracted to brightly coloured toys and motifs. Numerous academic researches show that children’s preferences change with increasing age. Many children under ten when asked, will identify red (or pink) and yellow as their favourite colours. Those above ten say that they start preferring blue. Experts who study child development consider it to be with the process of growing up. They tell us that such changing preferences tie in with changing and improving abilities, with maturity and the perception of different moods.

Educationists have also found that colour preferences are closely connected with the gender. Numerous researches show that most little girls from the age of six onwards prefer pink, lavender or violet. Little boys like black and other dark colours more than girls of their age. Adults accustom little girls and boys to like certain colours. The question here is, are girls’ and boys’ colour choices acquired or natural/innate?

Speaking about emphasizing certain characteristics by means of colours, gender identification is only one example. If you see a child’s chart done up in bright colour, it could advantage the child who has drawn it by being not only meaningful, but memorable as well. As explained, the child’s memory of the colours used may open the door to what the colour enclosed or signified in text. Again, the child is learning by making associations.

Publishers are aware of this fact and have used colour in children’s and teenager’s books to the maximum advantage. You also can use it to teach, motivate and inspire children who draw their inspiration from you.

Colour language and children

First consider how children get acquainted with colours. They learn to distinguish them long before they know their names. Children learn the names of colours at around the age of 2-5. Girls usually identify colours earlier than boys. Of course, all children develop differently, as the process of growing up is connected with the state of nervous system.

Here are typical associations between colours and where a child can find them, in the natural form. It is helpful information as young children progress through their charted Mind Map

Yellow – bananas, lemons, sun

Red – apples, tomatoes

Blue – jeans, sky

Green – peas, grass, leaves

Grey – an elephant

Brown – a bear, tree bark

Illustration

Research has shown that, for example that if you were to paint an apple blue, show this blue apple to a child and ask him what it is, it takes him or her more time to recognize it. Come to think of it, a child could find a blue apple funny. It testifies to their sense of humour and the ability to laugh at clumsy things and things that are incorrect. If a child uses such symbolism in a Mind Map, he is expressing his sense of humour. He may also be getting some facts to stand out.

Maybe you want to learn and teach a language. Your child is having to learn one.

Some languages such as French and Hindi have more than one gender. There may be two genders-masculine and feminine; or three-masculine, feminine, and neuter. Gender is always crucial and has to be learned along with the vocabulary. The way to do

this is to add a further dimension to your mental image of each word by colouring it according to its gender. You can choose your own colours for masculine, feminine, and neuter (if necessary), but you must stick to using the same ones all the time. As you learn each new word, mentally apply the relevant colour to the image.

You might choose blue for masculine words, red for feminine. Then, if the word “dog” is

masculine, colour it blue; if the word “door” is feminine, colour it red. Let a child do this, and it could bring out the most humorous side, leading to fun and game playing – and memorizing.

Note: not true. Try Hindi words and colour them.

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Chapter 5- Fun and games in Mind Mapping

This continues from where Chapter 4 did not leave off because children like to have fun. Everyone who is six or seven or eight years old likes to play. The nine and ten year olds like to play physical and mental games as well as their interests begin to turn towards the world, towards themselves and their cohort group. This broad description is true for all children, within the varieties of their individual personalities, geographical location and material to play with.

Children in this country fit into childhood along conventional lines, then grow up with greater awareness of the opportunities at their disposal, or the lack of opportunities. It is impressed upon children in India that school work and outdoor activities should be given maximum value. Our children are taught to respect and please their elders. They are given to understand that success in the future is based on this.

There is also currently a move to ease the pressures of serious, academic school curriculum under any of the national boards. The total expected of school children is a great deal. Concerned adults have come to understand that there is more to growing up than serious study and not stepping out of line. They have come to understand that a factor such as childhood fun, has to be maintained for children. Educationists have provided a powerful tool. They have provided a concept such as Mind Maps, which allow the academically driven child to use tools such as fun and games to study. The medium of such study is the Mind Map.

The drive is towards a balance between school related activities for junior and secondary school children. It is also the reason why Mind Mapping is being picked up by parents and teachers for young children, and the reason why children are responding readily to learning through Mind Mapping.

Adults who enable children to Mind Map are aware of the nature of Mind Mapping. Children approach the process as though it is a craft which they can handle and get better at, a kind of hobby. They say that they look forward to Mind Mapping because of the fun element that it embodies. When a child of six starts out with Mind Mapping, he thinks of it as a learning game and possibly another form of child’s play.

Different types of play

Physical play

Motor play provides critical opportunities for children to develop both individual gross and fine muscle strength and assists coordination of movement and muscle, nerve, and brain functions. Recent research has confirmed the critical link between stimulating activity, logical thought (maturity) and brain development. Young children must have ample opportunities to develop physically. The process takes place through motor play and increases the young child’s confidence towards more physical activity.

Social Play

A variety of opportunities for children to engage in social play are the best mechanisms for progressing through the different social stages. Children are placed in a group with their peers in the process of attending school. By interacting with others in play settings, children learn social rules such as, give and take, reciprocity, cooperation, and sharing.

Through a range of interactions with children at different social stages, children also learn about their own wants and emotions. The interactions with their peers and older children teach them to apply modelling and to use moral reasoning to develop a mature sense of values. Children need to participate in a variety of social situations so that they can function effectively in the systems of learning and application of that learning.

Constructive Play

Constructive play is when children manipulate their environment to create things. It could take place when they play with sand and water, construct simple toys such as dolls and miniature models and draw on the floor and wall with whatever they have at hand. Constructive play allows children to experiment with objects and figure out patterns and combinations that work and don’t work. They make simple conclusions about their play and art, about song and achievement.

Constructive play gives children a sense of accomplishment and empowerment. It gives them the realization that they can make a difference to things around them, their environment. It is child’s play which provides the child with the realization that she can handle and manipulate objects for different purposes. The child with growing confidence translates these conclusions towards manipulating words, ideas and concepts.

Fantasy Play

Six and seven and eight year olds gain an understanding of mental operations and think logically about concrete events but have difficulty understanding abstract concepts. Abstract concepts are matters which can be explained and talked about, like whether the rules of a game are right or unjust. As their mental operations grow, children close to ten and above begin to think in logical ways, though they may not recognise this fact as well as their parents or teachers. They are reasoning and building on any mental operations from an earlier age.

Children teach themselves abstract symbolism. They can deconstruct from the final product of constructive play. They learn to role play and apply imagined situations. They experiment with language and formulate their own words and expressions. They are exercising their imagination and diverse relationships at home and with friends. In addition, children develop flexible thinking and learn to base information on factors beyond the immediate. Adults may think that particular children are describing the parameters of a different truth. It is just that children are trying their best to stretch the boundaries of their lives and are testing adult-given rules.

Other ideas, concepts, dreams, and histories are all part of fantasy play. In a society driven by technology and the absolute, children have to practice with any and all forms of abstraction – time, place, amount, symbols, words, and ideas. In a way, these are essential for growth for a child’s mind.

Games With Rules

Developmentally, most children progress from an egocentric view of the world to an understanding of the importance of social contracts and rules. Part of this development occurs as they participate in traditional games. In traditional societies, the girls play a different set of games e.g. rhymes set to the swing of the skipping rope. Boys wait to be included in football and any ball game, just like the boys in the more senior classes. The “games with rules” method teaches children a critically important concept – that any business in life has rules (laws).

It becomes apparent that Constructive Play comes to the fore when children Mind Map. Children work with materials of paper and pencil, they accomplish something and feel empowered when they have tackled something like a difficult lesson, completed their homework and done well in an exam thanks to the Mind Map of that topic.

At a secondary level, Social Play was involved if the children undertook the Mind Map as a team. It was fun, and also had Games with Rules. Within the free form of the Mind Map, there were steps to be taken and motor coordination as in Physical Play. The rules of the games have been researched and studied.

A Mind Map is fun for young children to make. As far as they are concerned, it is a better way to learn. It not the type of learning that imposes on their faculties. They can take any fact from their texts or a lesson taught during the week. They can look inside their minds or their texts or books from the library or from what their teacher said. They can put it down colourfully while they connect other interesting facts to the central one. They can have as much fun putting in on paper colourfully and as correctly as they can. A good idea never loses its currency and simple ideas are often the best ones.

As they become accustomed to using Mind Maps and learn in a visual way, they should be encouraged to use them for taking notes in school. The quick shorthand way of recording information carries on being a great, fun way to study. When they get to the stage of doing school tests, they should be shown how to summarize entire chapters of their schoolbooks on a single page Mind Map. Revision can be fun too, as the children grow more sure of what they know and how they will recall facts and events for the test.

Mind mappings can help revision, even if teachers’ course notes are conventional. They

condense material into a concise, memorable format. You have sown the first seeds of structured thinking and have used your kids’ natural associated memory to learn things without the pressure of getting every little bit right, without the option of exerting their own creative play options of ‘what ifaˆ¦?’

It really is that simple and your kids will thank you for this gift of learning in the years to come. Once they become addicted to using the computer, you can introduce them to electronic versions of Mind Mapping which can be bought cheaply on the internet and downloaded immediately.

Your children have accumulated data in Mind Map form. They have observed the strands of their accumulated knowledge and made more associations than in the early attempt. The completed Mind Map is a thought-generating tool and the best part of it as far as the children are concerned, was the fun they had and the games-type play they had while they went about it.

Mind Map game boards

The board games promise idea generation, fun and creativity. They sound just like Mind Maps, in fact. The game boards can be used for light-hearted fun and idea generation, both for school work and at home. As with Mind Maps, adults try them out first. The objective is to generate random new ideas in a fun way. Older children work towards team building and solution finding.

Key elements of the game contain spaces where inventive young minds can add words to elements known as ‘thought clouds.’ It includes card paper and labels. Children begin by selecting a theme and adding words to the game board. Here, the random words are selected before the main illustration. This can be placed face down. Then, a dice, coin or disc is thrown on to the Mind Map game board. The place where it lands is the prompt to be followed.

Chances are, that the dice will land on a word. The player can select a theme for words to add or select words, the meaning of which is abstract and can be used to denote a great many different things. Remember the Fantasy Play above? The potential uses are infinite.

The game boards present a fun, imaginative and creative way to utilise the Mind Map format. Fun can also be added to the game board by sharing out or selecting chores.

Using associations

Children’s and adults alike love to form links between pieces of information, building up a repertoire of associations. When any brain receives new information, it searches in its long-term memory for something the same or similar, so that it can understand what it is. This happens in less than an instant and is not a conscious process. Creating associations is the second stage of Mind Mapping as you will remember. Creating associations is also very helpful in improving memory.

By actively creating a personal link for your brain to hook on to, you give your memory

something to work with, helping it to retrieve it later. Play association games-perhaps your child will carry on with it on bus journeys to school: she will ask her companions given a word (maybe a key word from an interesting language or history lesson) what is the first thing they think of? It leads to peer group learning, but informally, out of the class room. It speeds up the process of making associations, a technique that helps to improve memory.

Memorising facts and figures

Being able to recall facts and figures improves a child’s chances of doing better in exams and also her general knowledge-and is invaluable if she want to enter quizzes or competitions. There is the Association Technique which will be described in much details later. Basically, your child learns to create an image out of each piece of information, then she learns to link them together. For example, if she wants to remember that Pt Jawaharlal Nehru was the first Prime Minister of India in 1947, she would create an image for the year and attach it to Pt Jawaharlal Nehru giving his ‘freedom at midnight’ speech. The important thing is to create an image that is memorable for her and therefore will help her to recall the associated information.

Crossword, word and maths games

Children’s brains are always more active than adults. Exercises that keep your memory and brain active can also be undertaken by them. They would require some mental

effort. Crosswords and word games are excellent, because they are pushed to recall words that they might not use regularly. It increases their vocabulary, important in any subject and with any learning method, especially Mind Mapping. Remember the importance of key words in Mind Mapping?

Children would be encouraged to use the newly learnt words more often. That in turn makes them more articulate and confident. Children’s puzzle books such as crossword puzzle books are available in plenty in any book store. For children as young as six, it would also lead to a general love of puzzles and maybe on to participation in general knowledge quizzes. In addition, most of these puzzle books can be coloured by pencil or crayons, thereby increasing their sense of what colour means to them personally.

Play word games with your children. It will help stretch them in a fun way while keeping you on your toes. Practice mental arithmetic when you are stuck in traffic and present the problem with your children. You know the answer when you practiced it in your head.

It train children to do simple arithmetic in their heads from a young age whenever the opportunity arises. You could ask a six year old to add up the cost of the items in your

cart before you get to the checkout. Or you could ask your ten year old to divide a restaurant bill between your friends – or his. The method has an additional benefit of getting him to grasp the value of money. try You can always confirm the results on a calculator and also show him how to do this.

As your mind becomes more efficiently active at simple arithmetic, he will learn to rely on it. It keeps his short term memory agile and he appreciates how simple sums can be used in everyday life. Your child will do his maths Mind Map with small sums in the associated links in very little time.

The Mind Mapping Game

This was taken from a verified and respected blog. The contributor refers to Getting Things Done, a book by David Allen. One of the steps recommended in Getting Things Done is to brainstorm to capture all the elements necessary to complete a project.

The suggested way to do this is via Mind Mapping. The author says that when he first heard about Mind Mapping, it was in senior school and he was a snotty know-it-all who thought that he was above every concept that he did not already know. Which meant that he kind of brushed it off. He claims that now that he is an adult and a bit more mature, he is giving it a try using a piece of software.

He is not just giving it a try. He has discovered that Mind Mapping is a blast. The one random topic he picked is providing a lot of entertainment. More than this, just getting the thoughts out of his head is a rewarding experience, and it is revealing a lot of the steps necessary to complete the project. He definitely recommends giving it a try. He recommends that other adults experiment with Mind Mapping on their next project.

He just wishes that other than finding out about Mind Mapping when he was in senior school and when he did nothing about it, that he had started still earlier. He wishes that someone, anyone of the adults had made him sit down and actually do a Mind Map. He would have got a great many things done, he feels. This is his greatest regret that he has woken up to how to manage his time, improve his memory and creative instincts at his late age. He is having a blast, but he could have done that some twenty years ago with Mind Mapping.

Education under the task “Alternative”. By studying and analysing our case study on Netherlands, we seek to implement alternatives to increase parental involvement through the teaching of Sexuality Education in Singapore.

Rationale for choice

We have chosen sexuality education as our area of concern as the current methods in sexuality education is not effective in light of the modern youth culture. School-based sexuality education in Singapore is incorporated into science, health education and civics and moral education subjects. The Ministry of Education [1] (MOE) has also introduced the “Growing Years [2] (GY)” series as well as “Breaking Down Barriers [3] (BDB)” programme which is compulsory for all government schools to adopt. Parents are also given the option to opt-out their children from attending these programmes.

In view of a more liberal and open-minded society, youths are increasingly receptive to new ideas, and are easily and most influenced by the mass media. This is supported from our primary research, where students are asked on the degree of influence of the parents, teachers/counselors, peers and the media have on them in terms of providing them with knowledge and advice regarding sex education.

The progress of mass media has overtaken the current measures initiated by MOE in embracing healthy development of sexuality amongst the younger generation in Singapore. This is further substantiated by the increasing trend [4] of teenage pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), where they are engaging in sexual activities at a far younger age.

Thus, the role of parents in sexuality education is crucial in educating their children about sex in an environment of openness, thereby enhancing children’s understanding on subject. The current approach of allowing parents to have the option of opting out their children from sexuality talks provided by the school contradicts with stand of MOE recognising that parents are the most important educator in sexuality education [5] . Referring to our primary data gathered, 66% of the students surveyed feel that parents are not doing enough and are not actively involved in their sexuality education. Thus, by providing parents with the opt-out option, it does not fully engage or include them in educating their children and hence it is an inadequate approach taken by the MOE.

As compared to parents who are still embracing the more conservative Asian values, youths have vastly conflicting values and this results in differences between their mindsets altogether. Regardless of their backgrounds, parents have to step in and be responsible in educating their children on sexuality issues. However, there is difficulty in this as most parents are uncomfortable [6] with discussing these issues with their children. This is a result of the new mindset of our generation on the topic of sexuality.

To counter the problem, the MOE should collaborate more closely with parents in order to alleviate the conflicting values of parents and youths with a more holistic curriculum that is, also, more applicable to our generation of youths. Hence, the alternatives must provide a strong and wider range of skills to teenagers in the dealing of sexuality issues. This topic is extremely important, as it addresses the younger population, who will form the bulk of our future stakeholders in Singapore.

Aims and Objectives

We aim to empower parents with better skills and knowledge in educating their children on sexuality issues. Our objectives are to:

To open up parents towards discussing the sensitive topic of sexuality to their children.

To promote effective parent-child communication.

To enable students think through the possible consequences of their decisions rather than turn them off with a moralistic approach.

Scope of project

Target Audience

Parents: Our primary target audience is parents of students from Raffles Girls’ School (Secondary) and Raffles Institution (Secondary).

Students: Our secondary target audience is students from secondary schools.

Research Focus

With the main focus on increasing parental involvement in sexuality education, we plan to carry out our project over a span of 5 months through a multi-tiered approach; encapsulating both the affected group (Youth) as well as the wider community they are a part of (Families/parents and School), covering our primary aim (healthy development of sexuality for youths).

Research Methodology

Primary Data

We interviewed Mr Leo Hee Khian [7] , a student Advisor from Raffles Instituition.

Online surveys were given out to secondary school students from government and independent [8] schools. This is to ensure a better representative of the student population in Singapore as schools carrying Integrated Programmes may offer a different approach in carrying out their sexuality education program to their students.

Surveys were also distributed to parents through the Raffles Parents’ Association (RPA) [9] and Parents for Raffles Girls’ School Association (PRGS Association) [10] to gather information on their beliefs and mindsets regarding the current pedagogy and curriculum of Singapore’s sexuality education so as to help us craft a better method of instruction.

Secondary Data

As sexuality education is a sensitive yet important issue, there have been many active discussions on online forums as well as newspaper articles relating to the content of its curriculum. There are a variety of published reports and journals on all aspects of sexuality education which are available for review. We reviewed several case studies of different countries using the internet resources on how they deliver their curriculum, catering to children and youths of different age groups. The role of parents in educating their young is also studied to gather information on how they can contribute most effectively in developing their children.

CHAPTER 2 – CASE STUDY: NETHERLANDS AND USA
Netherlands

Overview

The Dutch Model was formulated, focusing on ’empowerment and mutual respect’ in a relationship among youths. aˆ¦aˆ¦ + parent involvement

Advantages

The Dutch Model provides accurate information regarding risks associated with pre-marital sex and adequate information regarding contraception and birth control methods. It focuses on values, attitudes, communications and negotiation skills. It helps youths to deal with peer and other social pressures; providing opportunities to practice communication, negotiation and assertion skills.

Disadvantages

Sexuality education syllabus might not be comprehensible to young children and hence the effectiveness of curriculum may be questioned. As sexuality is a sensitive topic, it may cause parents to opt their children out of the programme. The Dutch Model does not eliminate the risk of pregnancies or STDS as it excludes the teaching of contraceptive methods to youths.

United States of America (USA)

Overview

Sex education in USA primarily focuses on advocating abstinence, but more schools are now offering abstinence-plus curriculum [11] . There are many vendors and organizations which have various programmes [12] catered to different age group and a range of socio-economic background, such as white middle-class, African-americans, poor, parents of 11-15 years old.

Advantages

Through abstinence and abstinence-plus curriculum, the values of abstinence can play an important role in helping teenagers in resisting the media and peer pressure, as the youths are living in a sex-saturated culture where having casual sex is the norm.

The abstinence-only curriculum [13] focuses on two pronged approach: It places more emphasis on social, emotional and psychological aspects of sex; it also educates teenagers regarding love, intimacy and commitment. On the other hand, the abstinence-plus curriculum seeks to reduce teenage pregnancies and STDs as a result from “unprotected” sexual activity; hence it teaches teenagers regarding contraception methods. Coupled with direct funding [14] and support for the abstinence programme by the government, it allows more resources to be pulled in for a more effective sexuality education.

Based on surveys [15] conducted, results has shown that there is overwhelming parental support for abstinence curriculum. Furthermore, since many parents in America are Christians, coupled with the fact that the majority of the religion in America preaches abstinence (no sex until marriage), as well as many abstinence related themes (love, commitment, etc), this will mean that most parents are fully aware of what their children are being taught in schools. Thus they can complement the current sexuality curriculum, making it more effective.

Disadvantages

With the comings of our X-generation youths, the idea of abstinence may not be relevant with the modern American society and culture. Teenagers are having a more liberal mindset, mainly as a result of the mass media. Surveys [16] conducted showed that having pre-marital sex is the norm for many teenagers as a result of many factors, such as peer pressure and the modern pop culture.

While schools are largely involved in fight against teenage pregnancies, there is no standard curriculum taught to students throughout every school [17] . Not all parents are agreeable on the content of curriculum due to differing views as a result of religious or race differences as some religions [18] may not favour the abstinence or abstinence plus-approach.

Similarities drawn

USA was chosen as the second case as it is a very developed country with its people having a very liberal mindset, and this is something we aspire for Singapore to achieve, where parents and child will find it less awkward and more comfortable in discuss sexuality. Furthermore, both America and Singapore’s sexuality education both emphasises on abstinence, hence, by learning the approach and the (positive and negative) implications of America’s sexuality education, we can then apply it to Singapore’s context. Like Singapore, USA is a multi-racial nation and hence this will no doubt affect the approach to teaching sexuality education as a result of differing views.

CHAPTER 3 – SINGAPORE
Current Trends on sexuality education

MOE set a framework on the sexuality education curriculum which all schools have to comply. The key guiding principles of sexuality education are:

Parents bear the main responsibility for the sexuality education of their children;

Sexuality education is premised on the importance of the heterosexual married family as the basic unit of society;

The teaching of facts is integrated with the teaching of values, which reflect that of the mainstream society;

Students will be taught to understand and respect the attitudes, values and beliefs regarding sexuality that other communities propagate;

Specially selected and trained teachers are to teach the Growing Years package; and relevant resources in the community will be brought in to complement school resources for sexuality education.

This framework encourages parents to be actively involved in educating their children as they “bear the main responsibility”. While all government secondary schools are to adopt the Growing Years [19] series and independent schools may have their own programmes, parents are able to have the option of opting out their children from the sexuality education package.

Alternatively, schools may engage external vendors [20] approved by MOE. The current approved external organisations conduct programmes in the form of workshop and seminars as a pedagogy of teaching sexuality education, which only a few includes the participation of parents.

The need for involving parents

As parents are given the opt-in and opt-out option, this suggests that the sexuality education in Singapore is not a fool-proof plan. Essential issues involving the cognitive, emotional, social, physical and moral aspects of sexuality may be neglected by parents who chose to opt out their children from the programme. Embraced by conservative Asian values, these parents have not yet been fused with the liberal and open mindset that our world today shares. Furthermore, a large percentage, 70%, of the youths we surveyed felt that their parents were not being actively involved enough in their sexuality education.

Also, only one-quarter of the youths objected to their parents being involved in their sexuality education. Through research, we found that parents have a big influence in the decisions teens make about sex below the age of 16 [21] . However, from the results [22] we gathered from our survey, it seems that many parents are not aware of the importance on the influence they have on their children’s decision making. Hence, it is apparent that we have to bridge this gap in thinking and get the parents more actively involved in their children sexuality education programme.

Lessons Learnt
Confidence is key

Building good rapport between parents and child is important in breaking down generation gap as in enhances effective communication. This will greatly reduce the extent of differing/conflicting views and beliefs, enabling parents to provide accurate information regarding sexuality issues to their children.

Parents are found to possess skills of being an educator, and their natural role in sex education is evident. Yet many parents are not realizing their full potential as an educator due to reasons such as being uncomfortable in talking with their children about the subject and also lack of knowledge about anatomy, physiology, or other related information. Hence, they often feel shy and embarrassed to hold discussions due to the lack of confidence in educating children on sexuality. Thus, agencies should consider integrating parents fully into their health education strategies.

Creating awareness of curriculum amongst parents

While the school provides basic sex education, parents must be aware that the knowledge and information presented or taught in schools are only supplemental, and parents themselves play a pivotal role in educating their children at home, since morality issues regarding sex are mostly not covered in schools [23] . Thus moral issues and obligation must be taught by the parents of the child when it comes to sex.

The influence of mass media

Any parent can attest to the impressionable, unquestioning and imitative nature of their child, and since the mass media is one of the most prominent sources of the child’s outlook of the outside world, the constant repetition of sexual contents on the television will no doubt influence the child’s mindset to a certain extent.

Developed Strategies
Equipping parents

Schools can engage professionals, experts and even successful parents to deliver presentations or hold small workshops. Awareness is hence developed among parents on the importance of holding conversations with their children regarding sexuality education.

Parent -Teacher collaboration

To engage students through collaboration between parents and teachers in designing an effective use of pedagogy within the programme.

Engaging youths and parents on the net

Creating a forum to hold discussions enable youths to freely express their views or opinions regarding sexuality. Recognizing that most ideas conveyed by peers and the media may be misleading, we decided to rope in trainers/ counsellors qualified in the field of sexuality education to correct any misconception youths may have, and to provide proper advice to them. Also, by engaging parents to monitor these forums, they are able to contribute to the discussion by posting their views at the same time. This will benefit parents greatly, allowing them to have a general deeper understanding in youths

Proposed Alternatives
Parent Education Programs

Schools may tie-in school events with parent education programs to improve adults’ skills for educating and communicating with youth, especially about sexuality and reproductive health.

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Reviewing the delivery of sexuality education programme

The Raffles Parents’ Association can hold a meeting with teachers every 6 months to review the pedagogy of delivering the programme. During their reviews, they should include the views of parents about the content of the sexuality education programme that ought to be taught in school. The reason being that parents have a better idea of what their adolescents’ mindset are about the topic of sex as well as the exposure that their teens have on the topic. This can be done by having feedbacks from parents online through the Raffles portal website, for ease of communication. With these feedbacks and reviews, our school can have a more efficient, relevant and effective way of delivering sexuality education messages to students as well as having a more impactful one.

Involving experts into youth online forums

As opposed to parents limiting the influx of information from the mass media which is extremely impractical, online portals (e.g. youth.sg) can be developed for adolescents to share their thoughts on the topic of sexuality. A sexuality education forum will be designed in the online portal such that open and healthy discussions can be fostered, occasionally with the advice of experts. Youths are able to pose questions and they are responded by qualified [24] trainers and counsellors in this field.

CHAPTER 4: ACTION PLAN
Parent Education Programme (PEP)
Key Players / Stakeholders

Schools

Secondary schools serve as a platform in enabling parents to participate in the programs easily as their children keep them updated with upcoming important school events. Our target group will be Raffles Girls’ School (Secondary) and Raffles Institution (Secondary) in particular.

Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) [25]

NGOs have the power to effect widespread change & place pressure on other key players to manage the trends. Examples of relevant expertise are the Institute of Advanced Parentology [26] (IAP), Focus on the Family [27] . Experts, professionals and facilitators in the relevant fields will be invited.

Successful parents

Parents who have successfully overcome their fear and/or embarrassment in communicating with their child regarding sexuality issues will be invited to speak.

Rationale for our proposed action plan/ course of action

Tying up with two important school functions such as Briefings to Secondary 1-4 Parents (held at the start of the every year the school principal) and Parent-Teacher Meetings (held in the second semester every year) will be useful in capturing a wide audience. This programme is to provide skills to parents to communicate with adolescents through these two interactive workshops. Parents will thus be more equipped in educating their children about healthy sexual development and decision making.

Action Plan

The organising committee of the respective school functions will include a short Parent Education Programme workshop where presentations are held by health professionals and parenting experts from various NGOs of relevant field. More male facilitators will also be invited rather than most of the time only female facilitators are present. This is to encourage more participation of fathers because same-sex parent-child communication at home tends to work better [28] . Successful parents will be engaged to share their experience on how they dealt with challenges while educating their children on sexuality issues. They will be able to provide information parents want and need as well as address the concerns and fears of the audience. These real-life examples will enable parents to acquire knowledge and information on how open communication can be cultivated in order to share their values and beliefs with their children effectively, while becoming more empowered to become effective sexuality educators of their children.

A mass mailing parents via the school describing the program will inform parents about the details of the available workshops. These workshops, tying in with school functions, will be scheduled on weekends (Saturday and Sunday) so as to avoid disturbing their work schedules during weekdays.

Feasibility

Parent talks are highly feasible as it has been done in most schools. However, it is difficult to target all parents to stay on for talks given their busy day-to-day schedules and other commitments. They may have work obligations, particularly amongst the low income groups or families with sole breadwinners, where sexuality education may not be perceived as important in such families.

Solutions

To make the programme an impactful one, innovative and interactive presentation techniques [29] can be used in conducting this workshop to captivate the interest of audience effectively. Also, incentives can be offered to encourage greater participation in workshops, including light refreshments and prizes such as vouchers and parenting books.

Reviewing the delivery of sexuality education programme
Key Players / Stakeholders

Raffles Parents’ Association (RPA) and Parents of Raffles Girls’ School Association (PRGS Association)

Parent support groups for the Raffles family. They represent the proportion of parents in Raffles, overseeing general matters in and out of the curriculum.

Teachers

They are the main source of medium in school which students get their sexuality education from. They deliver the curriculum and impart skills and knowledge to students.

Rationale for our proposed action plan/ course of action

Through the review of the curriculum, parents will have a better idea of their adolescents’ mindset on the topic of sexuality as well as the exposure that they have on the topic. Hence, parents can provide valuable feedbacks and perspectives as to what should be included or emphasised on during the teaching of sexuality education to students.

Action Plan

Feedbacks are to be collected from parents through the RPA and PRGS Association online portals for the ease of communication. Also, we can utilise our Raffles main website to link parents to the portals for more convenience. The RPA and PRGS Association will hold a meeting with teachers at least once every 6 months to review the content and the pedagogy of the sexuality education curriculum designed by the Raffles schools. Valuable and insightful feedbacks from parents should be brought forth in these meetings, to be discussed and considered amongst the teachers and members of RPA and PRGS Association.

Feasibility

For this proposed alternative to be successful, we need the cooperation of parents to be actively involved and concerned about the contents taught to their children on the topic of sexuality. They have to know that they play a big role in their sexuality education.

Additionally, boys and girls differing biological makeup and hence, some content taught may not be relevant to each gender if sexuality education is taught to youth in general. Some important segments [30] are thus left out which might be integral to the physical and psychological development of youths.

Solutions

A different curriculum can be catered to different gender to suit each gender’s needs accordingly. All schools, depending if they are co-ed schools, may adopt two curriculums catering for each gender, so that sexuality education can be taught separately for the girls and boys.

Involving experts into online forums
Key Players / Stakeholders

SgForums.com

A reputable online portal which discusses a variety of topics related to the current world today. Prominent topics are put into forums, where netizens are accessible to the latest news and discussions. There is also a forum named SgSexForums dedicated to discussion about sexuality, and we are looking at integrating sexuality education into this forum. .

Professionals and experts

They will be invited to be on the panel of forum, so as to respond to any queries or views posed by youths. They are trained experts from local sexuality education vendors which are approved by MOE, as well as consultants and professionals majoring in the development of youth.

Youths

Youths serves as an important voice for parents to have a deeper understanding on their views and concerns. This can help to narrow the communication gap between the two generations as parents are more aware of their needs and wants regarding sexuality education.

­Schools

Given primary views expressed by students in the forum, schools will work around the needs and wants of the students, giving feedbacks to the MOE. Understanding what youths are concerned with, a more convincing curriculum can then be developed to address their needs.

Rationale for our proposed action plan/ course of action

Forums generally receive much attention from the Singaporean youth communities, and web portals such as STOMP and sgforums.com are known to represent the voice of the youth society. Although earlier research findings showed that media platforms render youths susceptible to negative messages about sexuality, nonetheless we still believe that they are powerful tools through which we can put our ideas across. We are looking at reconciling mass media and healthy discussion of sexuality issues, and this can be achieved through online forums discussing about the local sexuality education. Through proper designing of the forums and engaging trained experts on the relevant topics, we believe these online forums will help to ensure a more open sexuality education barring the constraints of school curriculum, whereby youths can make themselves heard. This helps us to achieve our objective of a more open-minded society towards sexuality issues, which is instrumental in helping parents take charge of their children’s sexual well being.

Action Plan

Two separate forums will be set up in the online portal catered to both youths and parents. All posts are accessible to the public, and this allows each stakeholder to be aware of the different viewpoints that youths or parents have. Certified experts from sex education vendors will be invited to initiate unfettered discussion about sexuality, and also answer various queries that youths or parents might have. In addition, we will engage parent support groups to monitor these forums and input their own experiences, fostering healthy debate. As such, any misleading views will be corrected by qualified professionals, preventing youths from obtaining incorrect information from unreliable sources on the net.

Feasibility

Popular local web forums like STOMP (Youthphoria) and youth.sg promote unconstrained discussions about social issues, and encourage youths to share about their perceptions of the world around them. Many forums are also initiated by youths to discuss the quality of their sexuality education. One limitation, however, would be that the forums might be prone to defamatory and provocative comments by insensitive users.

Solutions

Inappropriate comments may be marked as spam by other users, automatically hiding the comment. Also, parent support groups can be tasked to take charge of these forums as administrators, primarily to fuel healthy debate about sexuality issues based on their own experiences.

Benefits of our plan

Primary Data

We managed to get results from a relevant yet wide spectrum of the population. This is evident from the ages of the respondents, which range from 13-18 as well as their educational level which include students from the secondary level and junior colleges. There is also an almost equal mix of responses from both males and females as well. With this, we can make sure that we can make sure that the spread across the population is not biased

A human is a social animal. In social life gender stereotypes and biases, children regularly learn to adopt their roles in the society that are not fair and same for both sexes. As children reach into adolescence, they are exposed to the different layers of the social life, this exploration knowledge has been gained through different sources among these sources, their parents are the main sources of their knowledge. Parents are the most influential personality for their children. Social life is categorized in many functions layers that a person has to perform in the particular era of his age. Every child have to play his gender role in the society as it grow up and passes through various stage of its growth life cycle.(Martin, Wood, & Little, 1990).

INTRODUCTION

Children learn often very soon what it means to be a boy or a girl in our society through numerous activities, encouragements, discouragements, opportunities, overt behaviors, covert suggestions, and various forms of guidance, children experience the process of gender role socialization. This is very difficult for a child to grow to the adulthood without experiencing some form of the limitations and privileges that a gender does have in our society. These privileges and limitations are called the gender roles that a human being has to play based on relation with the same gender. (Martin, Wood, & Little, 1990).

A child’s mushrooming sense of self, or self-concept, is a result of the whole host of ideas, attitudes, behaviors, and beliefs to which he or she is exposed and the knowledge stream flow around the child surroundings. This surrounding has been initiated from the parents and then it widens with the growth of the children.(Santrock, 1994).

As children moves in the larger world their social circle widens and they include the friends and other members of family and teachers and so many people who make them realize their social responsibilities and rights.

Parental Influence

A child’s earliest exposure to what it means to be male or female comes from parents (Lauer & Lauer, 1994; Santrock, 1994; Kaplan, 1991). The parents treat their children male or female in different manners when they are babies. The discrimination has been made in the style of dressing, type of dressing, colors of the dresses and their toys and expecting different behavior from the children belonging to different genders.(Thorne, 1993). One study indicates that parents have differential expectations of sons and daughters as early as 24 hours after birth (Rubin, Provenzano, & Luria, 1974).

Children began to respond the internal messages of their parents belonging to their gender roles of social life when they are just of two years old. (Weinraub et al., 1984). A research has resulted with a conclusion that children of the age of two and a half years of age use gender stereotypes in negotiating their world and are likely to generalize gender stereotypes to a variety of activities, objects, and occupations (Fagot, Leinbach, & OBoyle, 1992; Cowan & Hoffman, 1986).

Parents provide first glimpse of social behavior to his child. They instruct their child how to converse with each class and category of the social components of the whole society. Parents are the first social teachers of their children; they teach them how to react and how to resolve the conflicts of the life and how to advance in social life. (Fagot, Leinbach, & OBoyle, 1992; Cowan & Hoffman, 1986).

Role Models

The most important influence on the social life of a child that the parents have is the role modeling. Parents are the first role models for the child. This is proven fact that visualization and practical implications have deeper effects on the mind in comparison of listening. When the children observe the practical behavior of their parents towards different people relating to their social circle they learn the same and implement in their upcoming life. For example, if a child observes a polite behavior of his parents towards the home servants, they would also start to respect and polite attitude with them and if their parents would be rude with them, they would be like wise. This also have been researched that the children of the shy and non-confident parents remain shy and non-confient and unsuccessful and the children of sharp and intelligent parents become socially strong and confident. This is all because of role modeling effect. (Hoffman, 1977).

Instilling Confidence:C:Documents and SettingsNaveedDesktopindex.jpg

Socialization revolves around the globe of confidence. Confidence is the key to achieve success in every portion of life. Parents can instill confidence in their children in a number of ways. Parents can instill confidence in their children through allowing them in independence and providing them friendly and cooperative environment.. As the children grows up and enter his feet in the Middle School or high school this concept become so important. Children start to build the basis of their career and social life from this age. Children with great deal of confidence become the team players and team leaders depending on their level of confidence that have been given through their parents. If a parent has taught her child that the sky is the limit and has promoted his self confidence, he will be more likely to act upon that, leading him to make friends easier and stand up for himself. But here is a very important factor to consider by the parents the independence would be folded in the social and moral limits. Independence does not mean to be unsocial or beyond the limits of the morality and modesty. (Haslett, Geis, & Carter, 1992).

Social Image and Ambition Building:

Many studies have shown that parents treat sons and daughters differently (Jacldin, DiF’ietro, & Maccoby; Woolett, White, & Lyon; Parke & O’Leary, in Hargreaves & Colley, 1986; Snow, Jacklin, & Maccoby, 1983; Power, 1981). However, parents play vital role in the development of the sense of ambition about the social status for the children. For example, if the parents are constantly encouraging the child and seeking to mold its attitude towards someone great, the child is more likely to believe that this fate is possible. So the children will be confident enough to speak with college admissions counselors or potential employers, because all of her life he or she has had a support system that told her she could do it. On the other end the children who are taught the limitations of destiny ad fate, they always would be least confident and put all their lack of efforts at the fate and luck and would not try much in life to attain the expected social and professional expectations imposed by his or her parents. . (Miller & Lane in Ber- ryman-Fink et al., 1993).

Conclusion:

Parents are the key elements in the social life of the children. As the consolidated and strong base ensures a strong and reliable building. Likewise, parents are start of the social life of the children and they are role model to their children. Their social behavior would be developed with observation of their parents social behaviors. Children first friend would depend on the social circle of their parents. Their per-school and school, their field of study and their social status would all be dependent on their parents.

When growing up I loved playing outside, in the local park or being taken to many country parks by my father. I class myself as being lucky to have grown up in a generation where playing outdoors was a regular occurrence, where boys and girls played together in mixed ability and mixed age groups. Having had two children myself I wanted to continue the great experiences that I had in the outdoors with my father. However I noticed a difference in the way that they and their friends accessed the outdoors. Both my children are boys but they still accessed the outdoors differently from each other and girls that they played with also had sufficiently different ideas about the outdoors. Having discovered that boys and girls all seemed to have different ideas about the outdoors I wanted to investigate this further. I particularly wanted to understand any differences in the way they accessed the outdoors as I remember being distinctly referred to as a ‘tom boy’.

Chapter 2 – Literature Review

There has been much research focused on the outdoors, outdoor play, and outdoor education including sustainability and recreation activities. Taylor and Morris (1996) suggest that

‘Outdoor learning is an important and integral part of a high-quality early childhood education curriculum’. (pp 153)

There are many skills encompassed within the term outdoor play or outdoor learning, therefore before starting there is the need to try and define the term outdoor play or outdoor learning. The Institute for Outdoor Learning (IOL) (2009) suggests that the term outdoor learning is a broad expression that can encompass play, education, skills, sustainability and the natural environment and may be referred to as experiential learning for children which takes place within the outdoors. Additionally The Collins English Dictionary (2009) refers to outdoor as ‘the open air’ (pp 412), to play as ‘occupying oneself in a game or recreation’ (pp 442) and to learning as ‘gaining a skill or knowledge by practice’ (pp 337) therefore outdoor play could be defined as engaging oneself in a game or activity outside where you can gain new skills and knowledge. Consequently throughout this study the term outdoor learning will be used to refer to outdoor education, outdoor play and outdoor recreation activities.

This study will encompass the role of outdoor learning including its importance for children’s development, the safety and risk involved in children’s outdoor learning and the anxiety that this causes for carers, gender issues relating to how boys and girls use the outdoor learning environment, and geographical, community and social perspectives focusing on the impact that they can have on a child’s involvement with outdoor learning. To begin with we will cover the role of outdoor learning.

The importance of outdoor learning and the beliefs that it contributes to children’s development and progress date back to Rousseau (1762) and Froebel (1826). These beliefs have been continued, explored and researched in depth with new emphasis being placed on Forest Schools and outdoor learning. Philosophies and theories about outdoor learning tend to focus on the natural environment and the effect that this can have on children’s development. (Frost 1992, Fjortoft, 2001and 2004, Bilton, 2004, Lester and Maudsley 2006, Forest Education Initiative 2007, Tovey 2007, and White 2008a)

Boyd (1963) writes of Rousseau and how he was one of the first people who advocated developmentally appropriate education. Rousseau (1762) also wrote of the importance of growing up in the countryside and how this would create a more natural and healthy environment than the city. Froebel (1826) advocates the need for children to be provided with places to play where they can be nurtured and developed through experiences with the natural environment. Stevinson (1923) and Macmillan (1927, 1930) also promote the need for children to be in the outdoor environment. MacMillan’s ‘The nursery school’ and ‘The nursery school garden’ articulates the need for children to have free movement and experiences within the natural world around them.

Much attention has also been given to the need for children to play and learn in the natural environment and the important role that outdoor learning plays in children’s growth, development and social skills. (Stevinson 1932, Fjortoft and Sageie 2000, Riley 2003, Bilton 1994, 2004, Callaway 2005, Moore and Wong 2007, Joyce 2007, Shackell et al. 2008, and Balls and Burnham 2008) Stevinson (1932), McMillan (1930) and more recently Frankel (2007) have stated that natural outdoor environments are good for the health and development of children and the improvement that playing outside has on children’s concentration, behaviour and speaking and listening. They have also suggested that we should provide suitable provocative environments where new provocations and opportunities are made possible.

Studies have also been made and have shown that children benefit in other physical ways from playing in the outdoors and the natural environment. Positive effects and implications on motor development such as balance and co-ordination which will help children master their own bodies’ abilities in relation to the natural physical environment have also been recognised (Fjortoft 2001; Lester and Maudsley 2006). Dowling (2006) believes that outdoor learning can support children’s development and is a natural way of learning in an environment which is full of sensory experiences. The Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED) (2004) and the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) (2005 and 2008a) have also stated that outdoor learning can give depth to the curriculum and can enhance children’s physical, social and emotional development. Although much has been written that advocates the role of outdoor education it has been difficult to find a study that disputes the role of outdoor learning in the development and education of children.

Despite this evidence Edgington (2002) and Fjortoft (2004) believe that much of the developed world and on a micro-level; some practitioners have neglected the use of the outdoor environment. They suggest that this can be due to both weather related issues and concerns over the potential risks involved with playing and learning within the outdoors. Certainly, my own experiences in settings have shown that when the weather is bad the practitioners and the children stay inside, on only one occasion have I seen practitioners and children outside regardless of the weather. Additionally consideration needs to be placed on children’s safety when involved in outdoor learning.

Numerous people have suggested that today’s children do not have free access to the outdoors due to parent’s concerns over safety and risk. Perceived problems such as traffic and fear of crime or abduction have led to parent anxiety which can have a profound effect on children’s play and has led to many children being kept at home ‘safe from harm’ (Ball 2002, Portwood 2005, Palmer 2006, Tovey 2007, Carruthers 2007, DCSF 2008b, and White and Stoecklin 2008).

Nevertheless there is considerable discourse about the need for children to encounter risk. However we should also consider the difference between risk and hazard in terms of children’s safety and development. RoSPA (2010) identifies a hazard as something that has the potential to cause harm and risk as the likelihood that harm from a particular activity or hazard will actually be realised. By helping children to understand the risks involved in certain activities they can begin to make informed choices regarding their actions as Cook and Heseltine (1999) state

“Children need challenge so that they can learn about risk, their own capabilities and to develop the mechanism for judging it in controlled settings” (Cook and Heseltine, 1999, pp 4).

Joyce (2007) also states that encountering risk helps children to learn about responsibility. The DCSF (2007, 2008c, and 2008d) express the need for children to experience a balance between risks and fun. They suggest that not everything should be made safe and that children need to recognise and understand about risk as it is an essential part of growing up. Conversely Stine (1997) and Knight (2009) suggest that we should try to make things as safe as possible but still facilitate children’s risk taking. They acknowledge that by allowing children to take risks we will enable them to learn respect for the environment, keep themselves safe and develop competence. However Stephenson (2003), Carruthers (2007) and Sandester (2009) have suggested that too many safety issues about risks within children’s play are leading to too many rules and regulations which have made it difficult for practitioners to provide suitable activities, implicating that making a setting hazard free will make it challenge free. Despite this fact many other researchers have discussed the importance of rules, regulations and risk assessments. They agree that using risk assessments and involving children within this process will ensure children’ s safety, whilst still allowing practitioners to offer adventurous and risk taking activities. (Bilton 2002, 2004, Callaway 2005, White 2008a, and Knight 2009) Nevertheless Bache (2006) comments that risks are exaggerated and that all children no matter how well supervised will undertake some risk. Furthermore where a child lives may impact on their attitudes towards outdoor learning.

Within the literature reference is also made to geographical, community and social issues in relation to outdoor play or the lack of it. Hart (1979), Nabhan and Trimble (1994) and Garrick (2004) have all commented on and researched children’s outdoor play and their findings showed that geographical perspectives such as having access to wild areas or a simple garden played a part in the way children accessed the outdoors within their immediate and wider environment. They also highlighted the importance of having experiences with nature and the emotional experiences and intimacy children can develop from this such as a sense of place and belonging. Additionally Valentine and McKendrick (1997) suggest that although many cities and towns provide children with formal facilities such as playgrounds most children would prefer to play in ‘flexible’ environments such as open spaces and waste ground. However we should also consider the social factors in regards to children’s outdoor play.

In reference to social issues Tizard, et al. (1976) conducted a study that showed children from working class backgrounds opted to spend 75% of their time outside and that their co-operative play was more evident outside than inside. They also wrote of how working class children were more likely to play outside than middle class children. Millard and Whey (1997) also conducted studies on children in English housing estates and findings from their interviews and observations of children highlighted children’s enjoyment of physical active outdoor play and the opportunities that it gave them to socialise. However Carruthers (2007) writes of how many children no matter of their class; outside of school hours and without adult supervision; would naturally gravitate towards outdoor spaces and the natural environment where they would make their own games. Saracho and Spodek (1998) have also written about social classes and outdoor play and how children from working class backgrounds are more mature in their outdoor play and that their attention spans and concentration are much greater when playing outside than those of children from middle and upper class backgrounds. However these are only two perspectives and there is no other research evidence to either support or disclaim these findings. Besides which deliberation of children’s gender should also be taken into account in terms of outdoor learning.

Gender focused studies have highlighted play choices made by boys and girls when playing and learning outside and inside. Many have concluded that boys undertake more physical play outdoors, whilst girls are more sedate. Suggestions have also been made that boys sometimes tend to dominate the outdoor space and that there can be danger that outdoor spaces can come to be seen as boy’s territory. This has reflected gender stereotyping found in other studies about how boys and girls make choices within their play. (Tizard et al. 1976, Sanders and Harper 1976, Braggio et al. 1978, Hart 1978, Lott 1978, Henninger 1985, Bates 1986, Hutt et al. 1989, McNaughton 1992, Cullen 1993, Bilton 2004, Jarvis 2007, and Maynard and Waters 2007) There has been insufficient research to disclaim these findings and all found research has shown that there are gender differences in the way children play.

The literature suggests that great importance has been placed on the outdoor and natural environment and how it provides rich opportunities for the growth and development of children. There has also been much written about the adults role and the type of environment that practitioners should provide. This has not been covered within this literature review but we need to take note that these play a significant role in the way children will access the outdoor learning environment. There has been some reference to social and geographical issues and how these could aid or hinder children’s views of what the outdoors may provide for them. Significant research has also been placed on risks and safety and whether both parent’s issues and beliefs and practitioner’s beliefs have had an impact on the way that children within our society are accessing the outdoors. However gender issues have only touched upon the choices that children make when playing outdoors. This has led to me believing that there is a need to understand if there are differences in the way that girls and boys actually access the outdoors; do boys spend more time outside than girls? Are the children hindered by what is on offer?

This study is focused on gaining a deeper understanding on each of these issues in two early years’ settings.

Chapter 3 – Methodology

This chapter will identify the methods and techniques that have been used to gather the primary research for this study and the context in which the study was undertaken. Firstly the overall methods that have been used to collect data will be discussed and explained using a rationale. Next it will address any issues of validity and reliability during the research process. Finally the ethical issues which may arise will be identified and any measures that have been taken to address these will be discussed.

This research study will use both quantitative and qualitative methods to discover whether there are any differences in the ways that boys and girls access outdoor learning. The qualitative research will be obtained through semi-structured interviews with foundation stage practitioners and non-participant observations of children engaged in outdoor learning. Bell (1987) refers to qualitative data as

‘Understanding individuals’ perceptions of the world’. (Bell, pp 4)

Bell (1987) has identified one way in which qualitative research may be suited to this study. Through the use of interviews and non-participant observation this study will be concerned with listening to, observing and ‘understanding individuals’. Nixon (1981) suggests that studies involving children should be most appropriately researched using qualitative methods such as observations and interviews. As this study is child based using interviews and observations will provide rich and deep data which in turn will enable me to fully comprehend both practitioners’ perceptions and children’s integration with outdoor learning.

Despite this two quantitative methods (questionnaire and tally chart ) were also used within this study in order to gain numerical data in regards to the amount of time spent outdoor learning by both boys and girls and the types of activities that they undertook when outdoor learning.

As discussed this study uses four different methods of data collection; interviews, non-participant observations, questionnaires and tallies. Therefore my study encompasses different sources of evidence to compare and combine in order to reach a better understanding of my research question. Cohen (et al.) (2000) refer to this as triangulation. Roberts-Holmes (2005) suggests that

‘Triangulation gives the researcher the opportunity to check out their evidence from a range of sources’ (Roberts-Holmes, 2005, pp 40)

By using triangulation within this study I will be able to back up and enrich numerical data with information about the participants and their explanations and understandings. The data collection methods for this study will now be discussed in more detail outlining the advantages, disadvantages and rationale for each.

3.1 Observations

The first and second methods of data collection for this study were qualitative and quantitative observations. These observations were carried out in two different settings in Kettering; these were a Nursery setting and a Reception setting within a primary school. Nisbet and Entwistle (1974) suggest that when undertaking observations the observer needs to make them self invisible so that they do not affect the observed. To do this you need to have previously met the children and as closely as possible follow the same procedures for observation as the setting you are conducting your research in. Therefore the researcher made sure that she attended the settings on a number of occasions before conducting the research so that she was able to build relationships with the children beforehand and reduce the reactivity effect.

Greig et al. (2007) believe that observations are helpful in two ways;

‘observing a child in the natural environment will give the research a ‘real world’ edge ………direct experience facilitates the researchers’ ability to understand complex individuals and situations’ (Greig et al. 2007, pp 122)

As this research was designed to find out how individual children access outdoor learning, observation provides an ideal base to start from. They will also provide many insights into the first hand experiences of the children.

However as Scott and Morrison (2006) propose observations may be

‘Affected by the values and judgements brought to the observation by the observer’ (Scott and Morrison, 2006, pp 168)

The observer may have a specific agenda and see what they want to see, however the researcher in this case had conducted many previous observations and was able to observe the children naturally leaving the specific agenda of differences between boys and girls behind. The observations were carried out in a way that all children were treated as and observed as individuals. Despite the many disadvantages of observations especially the amount of time consumed writing the observations up they did enable the researcher to gain an insight into the children’s outdoor learning. The use of quantitative observations in the form of tally charts also enabled the researcher to gain numerical data which added more depth to the study.

3.2 Semi-Structured Interviews

The second method of data collection for this study was semi-structured interviews. These were conducted with the practitioners at each setting where the research was carried out. The interviews aimed to find out the practitioners views of the way the children within their care accessed outdoor learning and if they had noted any specific differences between boys and girls. One of the important reasons for choosing semi-structured interviews as a research method was that they can provide a more personalised approach and as Bell (2005) suggests adaptability. By using a semi-structured approach to interviews the researcher was able to take on the role of facilitator by asking set questions but also allowing the development of any issues as they arise throughout the interview.

Roberts-Holmes (2005) recommends that when conducting an interview you must have a sound knowledge of the subject that you are researching so that you can remain focused and conduct an informed interview. Through completion of the literature review the researcher was able to identify key areas which would need clarifying during the interview process. Also by conducting a face to face interview any misunderstandings on the part of the interviewer or interviewee could be checked and clarified immediately.

However a disadvantage of the semi-structured interview according to Opie (2004) and Bell (2005) is ‘the danger of bias creeping in’ (pp 166). They suggest that this can occur in many ways either intentionally or unintentionally and by selecting questions which are phrased to support your argument. This was a difficult process to go through and the questions were written and re-written many times to ensure that they were not pre-conceived in anyway. Therefore this issue was addressed within the research process.

Additionally there is also the issue of the time involved in scribing the interviews, arranging times to suit all the individuals involved and gaining informed consent. These issues were addressed by firstly writing to the settings involved and asking for their consent to be interviewed. (See appendix) Furthermore arranging times and places which would suit the individuals helped in the process of the interview. In regards to time related issues although transcribing the interviews was time consuming, the researcher did however gain particular insight into the way these practitioners identified outdoor learning in terms of the children in their care.

3.3 Questionnaires

The third method of data collection for this study was questionnaires. These were sent to parents of children within the two settings used for this study. The questionnaires aimed to give numerical data to this study. This data was gained by asking closed questions stating amounts of time children spent outdoors and how they played when outdoors. However open questions were also used so that parents or carers could expand on their findings, therefore resulting in more detailed data and also possibly identifying other issues which may not have been addressed by the researcher. Furthermore the researcher used questionnaires as they seemed to be less time consuming especially within a time limited study such as this. Moreover it could be suggested that questionnaires are unbiased as the researcher is not able to influence the answers. However, Scott and Morrison (2006) suggest that there is the potential for questionnaires to have potential bias built into them through the researchers’ agenda. When drafting the questionnaire there were extreme difficulties in phrasing the questions so that they were not biased towards the researchers own agenda. However after many draft copies and conducting a pilot of the questionnaire the questions became less biased and more open towards the respondents.

Bell (2005) suggests that a further disadvantage of the questionnaire is the non-response. However in this instance the researcher sent out one hundred questionnaires and received seventy five back this in itself could be seen as a disadvantage in terms of the time needed to collate all of the data. Despite the disadvantages of this method of research, the high response to the questionnaires enabled the researcher to obtain numerical and qualitative data.

3.4 Selecting the Settings and sample children

The researcher chose to carry out the research in two early years settings which gave children free flow access to the outdoors. This allowed the researcher to observe children without any limitations in regards to the way children access the outdoor learning that is available to them.

The settings were a sure start nursery and a reception unit within a primary school, which gave the researcher access to a range of ages of children to observe, as there may also have been differences regarding age as to how the children accessed outdoor learning.

The settings were also chosen as they were known to the researcher which meant that professional relations had already been built with staff at the settings. However, although these relationships were already in place, this was not regular and there was no personal contact with the researcher which may have biased the study.

The practitioners involved in the interview process were also chosen from the two settings involved within the study. The practitioners involved had many years of experience within the early years and in regards to children’s development. This meant that they were able to give the researcher a deeper insight and understanding in to the way they had seen children access outdoor learning in their prospective settings.

The children involved in the research were randomly chosen from the children whom the researcher had been given permission to observe. However to ensure an even mix of children within the research two boys and two girls were chosen from each setting which meant that eight children were involved overall. After the eight children were chosen their parents/carers were informed again and they were also made aware of their right to withdraw their child at anytime.

3.5 Validity and Reliability

Cohen et al. (2007) define validity as an

‘Important key to effective research for if a piece of research is invalid then it is worthless’ (pp 133)

They suggest that validity can be addressed through the depth and scope of the data attained and in the extent to which triangulation has been used. Therefore the issue of validity has been addressed through the use of many different techniques to research the study. This will give the researcher greater confidence in their findings especially if they all result in the same conclusion.

Additionally in terms of qualitative data consideration needs to be given in regards of respondents answers to questionnaires as their opinions and perspectives will contribute a degree of bias within the study. However Agar (1986) argues that the in-depth responses and involvement of respondents in the research will secure a sufficient level off reliability and validity. On the other hand Cohen et al. (2007) argue that this may be insufficient and therefore the data collected must be representative in terms of the question to be answered in order to have validity. This issue of validity has been addressed in terms of the types of questions asked in both the questionnaires and semi-structured interviews.

As this study involves both qualitative and quantitative data and Cohen et al. (2007) suggest that in terms of reliability these are both different, the researcher will strive to address issues in both contexts. In regards to quantitative data both Bell (2005) and Cohen et al. (2007) suggest that the type of data collection used needs to be able to be reproduced and present similar findings in order for it to be reliable. The questionnaires used in this study are easily reproduced and may give similar findings, however there may also be the case that the results may not be entirely similar as they represent individuals’ opinions which will differ on every occasion that the questionnaires are reproduced.

Brock-Utne (1996) promotes the use of qualitative research and recognises the holistic approach that it gives to research studies and suggests that the reliability in this case can be seen as dependability. Moreover Cohen et al. (2005) suggest that observations if carried out especially if they can be repeated and are given the same interpretations can also be reliable. Therefore the methods of observations and interviews can be both reliable and dependable; however again there is always the possibility that different outcomes may be gathered depending on the times, settings and individuals involved in the observations.

The research within this study can be deemed both valid and reliable due to the triangulation methods used and that each method of research used can be easily replicated and completed again and again with the majority showing similar findings. Additionally all of the research methods used are directly related to the question identified and as Burton et al. (2008) promote the validity and reliability of any research carried out

‘Will be largely determined by the extent to which the findings are directly related to the issues or problems identified at the outset………..the selection of appropriate methods and how systematically the have been employed’ (pp 168)

Also the disadvantages and advantages of each method of data collection used in the study have been carefully considered before being used within the context of this study.

3.6 Ethical Issues

Any researcher should consider ethical issues when conducting primary research with people as Burton et al. (2008) advise all researchers have one shared responsibility and that is a ‘duty of care’ to all individuals involved in the research process. BERA (2004) is an association which sets out specific guidelines for researchers who are undertaking educational research they to propose that researchers need to ensure that no harm comes to the participants. BERA (2004) also establishes that the researcher should ensure that all participants within the research are fully aware of their rights and roles. Bell (2005) agrees with this and also suggests that researchers need to gain informed consent from all participants involved within the study. This issue was addressed by communicating with all participants their rights and confidentiality before the research was undertaken. Letters were sent to each setting included within the study which clearly outlined the study and asked for consent to carry out interviews and observations (Appendix ), telephone calls were also conducting in regards to arranging times. Another ethical issue outlined by BERA (2004) is that

‘In the case of participants whose age…….may limit the extent to which they can be expected to understand or agree voluntarily to undertake their role……In such circumstances researchers must also seek the collaboration and approval of those who act in guardianship’ (pp 7)

This issue was addressed by the researcher sending out letters to all parents/carers or guardians of the children within each setting asking for their consent for their child to be observed. The letters outlined the study, confidentiality and anonymity, and the right to say no or to withdraw from the study at anytime. Parents/ carers or guardians were also informed again if their child was chosen for the research and again were informed of their right to withdraw their child at any time. (Appendix )

BERA (2004) and Bell (2005) also recognise the importance of making sure that any participants involved in the study are not put under any stress, discomfort or intrusion during the research process. This issue was addressed by the researcher visiting both settings on a number of occasions so as to reduce intrusion and for the children to become familiar with another adult in their setting.

Consideration also needs to be given to the questionnaires used and the ethical issues surrounding this. The researcher made contact with the participants of the questionnaire through covering letters. These letters fully informed the participants of the outline of the study and how the data collected from the questionnaires would be used; participants also had the right not to reply and to withdraw their information at any time throughout the process of the study.

In conclusion due to the time limitations and small scale of this study there are bound to be limitations of the research process, some of which were discussed previously. However much deliberation and careful consideration was given to the reliability and suitability of the research methods used, which provided both q

Activity is important part of different types of learning activities that young children need to experience in order to understand the world around them. Some of the activities and experiences includes singing, cooking, going for walks, group activities and interacting with visitors to the setting, listening to stories and re-telling stories. It is essential for children to be able to access a whole range of learning opportunities, as they learn from watching and imitating others as well as by experimenting and exploring. Children also need to take part in adult-initiated and child-led activities, which may be planned from observations of children’s interests and activities during their play.

‘Children’s Creativity must be extended by the provision of support for their curiosity, exploration and play. They must be provided with opportunities to explore and share their thoughts, ideas and feelings, for example, through a variety of art, music, movement, dance, imaginative and role-play activities, mathematics, and design technology.’

(The Early Years Foundation Stage 2007)

The EYFS has stated that a child need to play in order to learn and it is an important part in the foundation stage and I think this is very true as children learn by exploring and miming what other do.

2. Age range of children (in months)

The age range of the children I was working with was 30-60 months. The range is wide and the older children help the younger ones in the setting. The high ability children were able to carry out the activity with out any prompting. Children for whom English is an additional language used pictures provided to understanding what they were going to do.

What you planned to do and why
The activity I planned involved leaving out Lego blocks and seeing what the children came up with. I left some pictures of Lego houses (Appendix 1) to see what the children would make of this. The reason for doing an activity using Lego blocks was because there are more boys than girls in the setting. The girls also like to build and they join in with the boys when they start to build things. Bruce (2001), has stated that the rights of the children to play; this is about helping children to learn through play from their early years of life and with this in mind, the children were observed carefully in order to identify their interest, needs and stages of development. This allows for provision of appropriate resources, including floor space and equipment.

After observing the children for the first week I realised that the best activity to get the children learning and getting them interested would be to do an activity with the Lego blocks. The children who are in the setting all learn through play. According to the National Strategy (2008),

‘Play is vital for children. Quite literally, it’s through play that babies and young children learn, grow and have fun. It helps them understand the world and to develop socially and emotionally.’

I had to plan a child initiated activity carefully by organising the environment for learning and I also had to think about the resources that were required and available at the setting as well as plan the session so that the children had enough time to become involved in their play.

‘Children learn when they are given appropriate responsibility, allowed to make errors, decisions and choices, and are respected as autonomous and competent learners.’

(DfES, 2002)

Everyone has to be motivated to learn, this also applied to the children when they play, especially when they are given a choice. They will persist with the activity they were doing if they have chosen it themselves and feel a real sense of achievement once they have succeeded in doing what they wanted to do. This is due to the learning styles the children have. All children are individuals and learn in their own way. Their understanding of the problems is unique to them and it will give them great satisfaction when they complete their project without any help from the adults around them. Children need to learn through experience and doing; and they are very active in their play, because it is through action that new connections are made and reinforced in the brain.

The Curriculum for the Foundation Stage requires children to explore their environments – knowledge and understanding of the world, it builds on children’s natural curiosity and asks questions about their environment and this activity makes the children explore different types of houses around the world.

The content knowledge was intended to enhance and increase children’s problem solving skills and extend their interest through practical involvement. Children also learn to work as a group as they were building their houses.

To make certain I was working within the ethical guidelines I had to seek permission from my placement tutor, parents and children. The parents were involved by signing consent forms, which clearly states what I will be doing with their children. Safety issues were taken into account for the activity which was carried out. Scott et al (2008) has highlighted the importance of ethical and health and safety issues when working with children.
4. What happened when you carried out the work?

After looking at the pictures of the Lego houses the children decided that they wanted to build their own house from the Lego provided. They all worked together to assemble the pieces to put as the foundation of the house. There was a discussion (appendix 2) on what type of house they wanted and how many floors they all wanted. The activity I carried out was a success as the children involved made a house with a garden on the roof. They worked out the logistics themselves with very little input from me. They also made furniture and built in stairs from the ground floor to the first floor and then had a winding stair to the roof, which was already provided in the blocks. They talked about putting the winding stairs inside the house but found out after many tries that it was not possible to put it in the first floor, but would be good to put outside the house so that it leads to the roof garden. The children felt a real sense of achievement and describe to me how they built their house.

Child initiated activity gives us an opportunity to get to know the children you are taking care of at your setting. You need to observe and listen to them when they are playing. Watch carefully who they play with and what they say, when they are talking to each other.

By supporting child-initiated activities, we as practitioners can make sure that resources and opportunities are provided for extended learning for the children. It is easier to plan adult initiated activities, after observing child initiated activities, in order to extend the thinking and understanding of the children. We can base the activities to motivate the children to take part in the activities fully.

This is creative play, Sigmund Freud (1958) suggested that every child at play “behaves like a creative writer, in that he creates a world of his own, that is, rearranges the things of his world in a new way which pleases him. . . . The creative writer does the same as the child at play. The child creates a world of fantasy, which he takes very seriously – in which he invests a very large amount of emotion”. (pp. 143-144) Moreover, Moyles (2005) sees creativity as fundamental to successful learning, being creative allows children to make associations between one area of learning to another and to broaden their understanding and stresses that this area should be developed in early childhood settings.

5. Your assessment of the effectiveness of the activity

Play comes naturally and instinctively to most children, though some need adult support. There are guidelines for adult involvement during child initiated activities and they are planning, resource and challenging environment where children’s play can be supported and extended; it is the job of a practitioner to extend and develop children’s language and communication in their play through sensitive observation and appropriate intervention.

According to the EEL (Effective Early Learning) study, which was carried out by Pascal and Bertram on the children’s well being and involvement, there were three main features about adult behaviour that helped to promote children’s learning and thinking. They were about how an adult supports and encourages the children when they are upset and are feeling insecure. What they provide the children with to stimulate the children’s learning. It must be positive and exciting and they must be willing to join in with the children by either asking open ended question or prompting them into thinking about what they are doing and how to improve it. The children must be given the freedom to express themselves and experiment through play. We must support the children’s decisions and judgements by encourage the expression of ideas, and involve children in rule-making for everyone’s safety and wellbeing.

When giving children child initiated tasks at this early age, we are asking children to be responsible for their learning at a very early age as they have to plan and review what they are doing. This is very motivating and raises their confidence, self esteem and independence. This makes children take ownership of their own learning and I think it is a good way of teaching children to be independent and also be more responsible. Handscomb (2006) believes that when children think that the outcome of a situation depends on their own actions, they work harder to make a success of the activity and their self-esteem and social competence increase. This proves the theory that children should have more control over the learning activities in which they are engaged.

Laevers (1999) associates involvement with the idea of flow and suggests that Involvement, motivation and fascination are interconnected. He added that the most important is the satisfaction that goes with involvement stems from one source, the need to explore and experience.

The children noticed and commented on how the houses were built in the pictures and this is the Knowledge and understanding in the EYFS. They used their imagination to build their houses – Creative development. They also involved and interacted with others throughout the activity- Personal and social development.

I believe that there is a close connection between play and healthy cognitive growth. It forms a foundation for academic success in reading and writing.

6. Your personal learning

I have found out that child initiated activity provides opportunities to apply learning to everything that they do at the setting, but also helps children to develop skills, concentration, perseverance and the ability to work together in groups, which can be applied to all the learning that takes place in school, at home and in all aspects of life. You can learn a lot about children when you watch and listen. You have to allow children to follow their interests. I also learnt that you, as a practitioner cannot make assumptions about what part of the activity the child enjoyed.

I have discovered that by providing children with real experiences, gives them opportunities to use their curiosity and talk about things that are important to their everyday lives. This recognises the importance, to which Laevers (2000) believed that the deep involvement of children in such contexts facilitates their overall development. He defined involvement as a quality of human activity, which is characterised by a high level of motivation, concentration and persistence. He states that these are key indicators of quality learning outcomes for young children’s learning and educational achievement. In Laevers’s view, found constant higher levels of involvement when children instigated their own activity. Involvement occurs in the small area in which the activity, matches the capability of the person that is in the zone of proximal development and this view is widely stressed by others theorists such as Vygotsky (1978). On this basis, young children must for that reason engage actively in the learning process to make sure that effective learning takes place.

The Effective Provision for the Pre-School Education (EPPE) project (2003), during their investigation of pre-school education, identified five areas which were important when working with children. The quality of adult-child interactions promotes continuous thinking in effective settings, particularly environments that encourage sustained shared thinking between adults and children. This makes more cognitive, linguistic and social behavioural progress. I have learnt that children do best when they are engaged in activities that involves deep thinking, making mistakes and correcting them.

This task was based on planning and setting up an activity for a child – initiated learning. It was meant to provide an in-depth analysis of a practice experience using a model of reflection. The model consists of a series of questions, which assisted me in analysing my practice and framed my learning through reflection.

Child-initiated play helps children to take control of their own learning and ensure future academic success. Children learn to interact with others, develop language skills, recognise and solve problems, and discover their human potential and express themselves through play. Play helps young children make sense of and find their place in the world.

Young children are capable of surprisingly, being very independent and if the play area is organised suitably and expectations are high they will get on with their own activities and learn as they go. It is the role of the practitioner to decide on strategies for encouraging this independence. The practitioner should focus on providing a suitable framework for exploration and allow the children to develop at their own pace in child initiated learning.

According to Laevers (2005), when children are bored, it means that the level of involvement is very low and we, as practitioners should be worried. If we want deep level of learning from the children, we must provide activities that are of interest to the children and the level of involvement will become a lot higher.

It is important to know that in child initiated activities, we have to create an educationally rich environment for the children. Providing a well-organised stimulating learning environment, this enhances children’s learning where they are encouraged to explore and take risks.

I think the activity went really well and to further extend the children’s learning, I think we can do an activity on how we can build our own Lego town. I can get the children to discuss what they think we should have in our town e.g. doctor’s surgery, shops, park for the children to play in, schools etc.

After reflecting on the whole activity I have found that my use of interpersonal skills, active listening and building empathy with the children, was essential to children’s well-being, as it is recommended by many theorists.

As in any society, in Iran, children are the most vulnerable members of society. It is the duty of a civil society to protect and nurture young life. Most societies do this through enforceable laws that are meant to set societal standards for the treatment of children, as well as provide enforcement measures when those societal standards are breached. These standards are usually conceived as “rights.” When a child’s rights are abrogated, they are considered vulnerable to additional poor outcomes and social predations. (Hekmat, Community of supporting the orphaned children, 2007)

Contrary to the common definition of the word “orphan”, Iranian orphans and street children are often not without living parents. The parents of many street children are drug addicts. Others are jobless immigrants or refugees, and still others give birth to numerous children simply to exploit them for work. (Reza Shajiee, Factors of Cognitive levels of career success among Orphaned Students in Mashhad, 2009)

Definition of Orphan should be changed from not having parents or any guardian. We live in a world that children might be better off in the worst orphan housing than living at home. Parents working two shifts and even 3 shifts to survive are their children experiencing any care?! Talking about Iran not just those kids left without guardian and parents end up in the streets and being called orphans, but those who have proper parents they are asked to get out and leave school to help house expenses. (Reza Shajiee, Factors of Cognitive levels of career success among Orphaned Students in Mashhad, 2009)

Just recently a mother interviewed from the city of Irak (very industrial and well being city close to Tehran). She said they both (father and her) were working and good job as highly technical work in factory but they had to send their 12 years boy to Tehran to work. Other report from the chief police authority in Tehran said that any kid not just girls but boys as well after they end up to streets after 48 hours become sexually abused. The mother knew all about the situation and sound very educated women and the father had very highly technical job in one of famous factory in Iran. As I said Orphan definition has changed from Charles Dickens’ time. We are facing completely with different situation and needs different solution. (Dr.Abdollah Shafi Abadi, Career Guiding and Counseling, 2009)

The Situation of Orphaned Children in Iran and Their Career:

Street children live in abandoned buildings, containers, automobiles, parks, or on the street itself. The children who sleep on cardboard on the sidewalks, in parks, or in vacant and dilapidated buildings are often considered luckier than those who remain at home with exploitative parents. (http://www.iranpa.org/Seminar_Articles_Title.aspx?SeminarID)

Determining the numbers of street children and orphans in Iran is a virtual impossibility. Suffice it to say that they number in the thousands. In a 2005 report by the U.S. State Department, by the Iranian government’s own admission, 60,000 street children were accounted for in Iran. Numerous child rights organizations suspect that the number is substantially higher, citing figures of 200,000 or more. Of this number, about 55 percent are the children of Afghan refugees. A majority of the remaining street children are the offspring of mixed-nationality families, single parents or gypsies. While statistics report between 25,000 and 30,000 children who are forced to live and work in the streets and sweatshops of the city, Tehran is not the only place where children suffer the indignities of homelessness. ( Abolghasem Akbari, Academic and Career Adjustment, 2007), (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Children%27s_Day#Iran), (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Street_children)

Though a half a century has passed since Declaration of the Rights of the Child, the situation for the children of Iran has reached an unprecedented low. (Reza Nasseri, Farzaneh Taheri ,Theories of counseling and psychotherapy in Iran, 2008)

Though Iran is sitting on the world’s second largest oil reserves, due to a fundamentally corrupt political and socio-economic system of government, it fails to provide the most essentials needs of children. Today, the term orphanage has negative connotations. Other alternative names are group home, children’s home, rehabilitation center and youth treatment center. (Dr.Rahmatollah Nouripoor, Students with Emotional and Behavioral Problems, 2007)

Serving Charity is an international interfaith non-profit organization based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its mission is to serve the poor through charity and selfless service. Mother Teresa of Calcutta is expressed to be the sole inspiration for the organization and all of its initiatives. Serving Charity was founded in 2003 by Abbas Jahangiri.

He is also the current owner of the historical music venue el Mocambo and other companies. Serving Charity is entirely run by volunteers. It resides and is primarily supported by the revenue from the el Mocambo. The organization has charity projects in seven countries; Canada, India, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Germany, Iran, and Vietnam. (Dr.Shideh Abedi, Informed choice of job, 2008)

In fact, in Iran there is not enough support for orphaned children. They don’t have many facilities in their rooms. They may suffer from different diseases. Of course, it is the responsibility of the government to care about them; however, sometimes it becomes less serious than anything else. (http://www.behzisti.ir/news/Show.aspx?id=9226)

Abol-Hassan Faqih, head of the State Welfare Organization, stating that the bill would be reviewed adoption, he said: 20 thousands of orphaned children are now living in the country and about five thousands children who are qualified for giving to families are applying for. Faqih added: “Seven thousand families are in turn for taking the children but due to legal problems annually to 800 children are given to these families. Welfare Organization Leader stating that the best place to serve the needy in society, said: “Considering employment and housing comrade under the cover of the priorities of this organization. – (http://www.cnwn.net/dastavard.htm), (http://www.resalat-news.com/Fa/?code=32915)

He added: “If the land is supplied in the provinces and cities, there is no limit to the housing credit allocation comrade there. Welfare chief added: “This year 12 thousand residential units with 500 billion rials for the disabled credit are made.”He credits that the value of housing compared with last year is 10 times moreFaqih added: “After this legislation in the past two years, 435 disabled with college education were employed in government departments’ countries. He expressed that in the first phase of justice; 963 thousand of stock Welfare families received justice, and said: “In the second stage 400 to 500 thousand shares will receive justice. Leader pointed out that last year’s health insurance coverage was 100 percent comrade in the country, and said: “This year complementary treatment for disabled insurance runs. Welfare chief declared: to prevent disability in the community, families with a disabled child are free to experiment for not witnessed the birth of another handicapped child. Community Leader announced of buying 160 babies hearing polls machines in the country, and said: Two years ago, only 16 machines in the country had eudiometry. Welfare chief added: 450 thousand disabled people in the country are waiting to receive services in turn in the organization. Scholar stating that a million and 50 thousand cases have been disabled in the country, he said: 600 thousand of them are covered by Social Welfare. (Reza Nasseri, Farzaneh Taheri ,Theories of counseling and psychotherapy in Iran, 2008)

The Role of Government and Other Organizations in Giving Orphaned Children Job Opportunities:

The government is trying to provide more opportunities for orphaned children to have jobs or work in different institutes. In fact, they start to have an experience of working in their home centre. Boys and girls are given choices according to their interests. Their field of teaching is not the same, and they are separate from each other. Boys can learn some careers such as “Typesetting”, “carpenter”, “repairing vehicles”, and so on. However, girls can work in another fields including:”tailoring”, “cook”, “secretary”, and so on. (Reza Shajiee, Factors of Cognitive levels of career success among Orphaned Students in Mashhad, 2009)

In Iran, Children’s day is celebrated on October 8. In this celebration, children are allowed to display all the things that they have made themselves. By this way, they are encouraged to work harder and show their abilities to people. In this day, most of the people from different places come to visit orphaned children. Sometimes they spend more money for them to buy a souvenir from them. So this can be a way to earn money. (Dr.Rahmatollah Nouripoor, Students with Emotional and Behavioral Problems, 2007), (Dr.Rahmatolah Nouripoor, “What Job is related to our Personalities?” ,2008)

Empowerment is not a program that happens in a moment and a specific time but is a process that happens during the time and continued to occur. Former Head of Office family issues says: to achieve empowerment we must move step by step to reach the desired result. (Reza Shajiee, Factors of Cognitive levels of career success among Orphaned Students in Mashhad, 2009)

Hamid Reza Alvand emphasized that positive movements have done in the past years in enabling the children under the supervision of organization, he continues: In this regard, the Office Organization have emphasized on improving educational status of children, and was compiled in discussions based on the Quran and Islamic teachings, religious culture, and life skills education issues seriously. (Dr.Rahmatollah Nouripoor, Students with Emotional and Behavioral Problems, 2007), (Dr.Rahmatolah Nouripoor, “What Job is related to our Personalities?” ,2008)

He refers to cooperative groups of children living in homes of children and adolescents and says: formation of cooperative groups and access to relatively stable employment of children, is the concerns and goals of organization offices in the provinces of the country and diligently follow the plan but the plan in this year is continued to implement by changing the look and format of the defined programs. ( Dr.Rahmatollah Nouripoor, Students with Emotional and Behavioral Problems, 2007), (Dr.Rahmatolah Nouripoor, “What Job is related to our Personalities?” ,2008)

He also mentions this period, which children live under the supervision of organization, a “Gold Period”, because it’s a gold time that children can learn life skills for the continuing life.

He emphasizes that it lasts very quickly, and children should spend their time on educational factories and some workshops.

Alvand announced that learning one professional skill is one of the base programs of Empowerment Project under the supervision of children’s organizations, and says: This year, all children who are age 15 and older must have a form of professional skills and children who live at home and with Families also must be familiar with computer skill. (Dr.Rahmatollah Nouripoor, Students with Emotional and Behavioral Problems, 2007), (Dr.Rahmatolah Nouripoor, “What Job is related to our Personalities?” ,2008)

He points out on other skills in children’s empowerment project, and says: All children residing in homes and centers for children and adolescents must exercise one of the basic disciplines (athletics, swimming and gymnastics) to learn.

Alvand emphasizes that basic sports are very effective in developing the physical and mental health. He continues that by improving the level of physical and mental health can help children in entering to the community and cause empowerment of their social and individual interactions. It also can increase their self-confidence and safety against dangers or social damages. (Dr.Rahmatollah Nouripoor, Students with Emotional and Behavioral Problems, 2007), (Dr.Rahmatolah Nouripoor, “What Job is related to our Personalities?” ,2008)

The third skill in empowerment of children in the organization is learning the second language. Alvand says: all the children here have to learn one of the international languages and it is going to be compulsory in the organization.

The next thing is a powerful observation on children’s education. The aim is to increase their scientific and educational level of them and implement high academic qualifications.

Of course all these skills can be gained through group working and the main goal of the organization is to make these children independent in the society. (Dr.Rahmatollah Nouripoor, Students with Emotional and Behavioral Problems, 2007), (Dr.Rahmatolah Nouripoor, “What Job is related to our Personalities?” ,2008)

The former head of organization mentions that development in child care programs, decreasing the family centers, strengthening the Special Forces deployed in children and youth homes, consultations for adopting children and preparation of houses and…were the Programs in the current year’s agenda that will be the Office programs in the coming year too. (Dr.Rahmatollah Nouripoor, Students with Emotional and Behavioral Problems, 2007), (Dr.Rahmatolah Nouripoor, “What Job is related to our Personalities?” ,2008)

Currently 477 centers have circadian activity in the country. Alvand says: “Of these, 350 centers are non-governmental and 127 are governmental Centre to be run.

When we look carefully at this case we will only result in a conclusion that working in this place is by love and social welfare service to the community, especially orphaned children is the main target. In fact it shows the responsibilities and concerns of managers and employees in the organization.

(http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,107108,00.html), (Abolghasem Akbari, Academic and Career Adjustment, 2007) Children Welfare Organization is responsible for the later stages of children for material and spiritual support. For this purpose these are the supports from the organization:

1- Pay for professional training

2 – Payment of capital and employment of children working

3 – Payment of medical expenses

4 – Providing living essentials

5 – Providing housing allowance

6 – Providing facilities for married girls

7 – Support other unforeseen

Definition of an orphan is different from country to country, but all in all, an orphan is a child who does not have parents. UNICEF and UNASAIDS define an orphan as a child that has lost one parent; maternal orphan has lost his/her mother, paternal orphan is a child whose father has died and double orphan has lost both parents. In Botswana, orphan refers to a child below 18years who has lost one (single parent) or two (married couples) biological or adoptive parents. Parental deaths from all causes have left 143 million orphan children and youth across countries in sub-Saharan, Asia and Latin America, including 79 million ages 12 through 17years, (Osborn, 2007). Many countries try to address the challenges that this children faces by providing material support such as food, security, shelter and free education but they overlook the psychological, and emotional support and sexual and reproductive support that this children could be getting from their parents, therefore, these children become vulnerable to all kinds of delinquencies such as premarital sex, drug and alcohol abuse.

ORPHANS, SPECIAL GROUP

Orphans are special population, they do not have parents who raise them as compared to non orphaned children; they need special kind of care in order to help them go through grieving and meet all the developmental stages so they can become good adults in future. Improper development and upbringing make them vulnerable. There are many factors that make them vulnerable; firstly, growing up without parental care and love deprives children off a family support system. Family members rely on family system (comprising of; affection, self esteem spiritual, economics, daily care, socialization, recreation and education to meet their individual and collective needs (Turnbull and Turnbull, 2001). Parents, especially, have an important role to support intellectually, emotionally and self esteem needs of their children (Maxwell, 1998). Therefore adolescent orphans are devoid of the parental support and care which help them to develop a positive concept of who they are. They are also devoid of the self care instruction, which helps to prepare them for success in adult life.

Magnitude and Description of the Problem

There are many factors that lead to children to be orphaned, but HIV/AIDS is taking the lead. Other factors are road traffic accidents, diseases, financial constraints (for abandoned children), teenage pregnancy and suicide. Brink (2004) reports that the global number of children orphaned to HIV and AIDS increased from 11.5 million in 2001 to 15 million in 2003, the majority of the orphans being in Africa. Variations in Africa have also been noted (UNAIDS, 2006), with Southern Africa being the most affected. There are approximately 111,812 orphans in Botswana, representing approximately 15.2 percent of the children below the age of 18 years (Botswana child monitor, 2005). Over one half of the orphans are adolescents (64% as shown in the pie chart) (Botswana child monitor, 2005). The Botswana child monitor statistics continue to reveal that: 77% of all orphans in Botswana lost at least one of their parents because of AIDS; 87% of the orphans still have one parent alive but 34% of them live with grandparents, 11% live with other relatives; almost 56% of orphans live with heads of households who are not economically active and 44% of orphans live with those economically active but the majority of these are employed in low-paying jobs.

CHALLENGES FACED BY ADOLESCENT ORPHANS

Challenges on the General Well Being

Adolescent orphans come across many life rivalries that challenge them to progress in life as compared to un-orphaned children. In cases where the orphaned child does not have even a guardian or family member to give care, his/her needs are not met due to lack of funding and sub-standard conditions (Grey, 2010). These challenges affect their physical, behavioral, social, mental and intellectual wellbeing, (Grey, 2010).

Socially, orphans have problems in developing proper relationships with peers and yet display indiscriminate friendliness in an effort to reach to others. This is where attachment theory comes in; this is the theory that describes the dynamic of long term relationships between humans especially as in family and long term friends (Bowlby, 1969). Infants need to develop a relationship with at least one primary care giver for social and emotional development to occur normally and that further relationships build on the patterns developed in the first relationship. Orphans did not have chance to have relationship with his/her parents. This impedes an orphan’s ability to form genuine attachments.

Challenges Due to Improper Family Structure

Sometimes orphans are abused (sexually, emotionally and financially) by their guardian, step parent or distant relative, and then adolescent, whom is in most of the cases the eldest, will choose to take care of the siblings. She/he will become a parent, a care giver and a student at the same time. She will have to shift from being dependent upon parents to becoming responsible and providing for the family. The quest for stability and security can result in potentially exploitative sexual behavior with older partners (sugar daddies and mummies), young single mother hood and HIV infection. This is supported by Tshweneyagae, Wright and Hoffmann, (2009); orphaned adolescent are vulnerable to HIV infection because they are more amenable to multiple partners as a means of survival for emotional and financial support. Some, more-especially male adolescent, would join the growing ranks of street children who soon become professional beggars, glue sniffers and criminals. This will end up affecting their academic performance.

Orphaned adolescent are at a critical developmental stage formulated by Erikson 1968; identity versus confusion. Erikson defines identity as a person’s stable, coherent and integrated sense of self. That is who he/she is and what he/she stands for as a member of society. Healthy identity seems to correlate to the establishment of healthy relationship between parents and their children which allows for individual freedom, (Erikson 1968). The family can grant autonomy or feedback processes to either encourage or discourage individuality and innovations (Watson and Prostinky, 1998). As the orphaned adolescent have no parents to guide them, they end up on confusion role, not knowing who really they are and how others expect them to be. They end up being promiscuous, criminals and drug dealers in a confusion that, that would be the only way to earn finance. There are children who grew up in poor families, but because they have access to good guidance from parents, its rear to find them indulging in negative things to earn money.

Orphans and Education

Orphans are less likely to be enrolled in schools than non-orphans (Paxson and Ableidinger, 2002). However, contrary to recent reports from World Bank and UNSAIDS, the lower school enrollment rate of orphans cannot be accounted to solely by their poverty, (Paxson and Ableidinger, 2002). Paxson and Ableidinger (2002) found out that the lower enrollment of orphans is largely accounted by the nature of the relationship between the orphans and the decision making adult in the family. Children in household headed by their grandparents and parents are more likely to attend school than those children who live with their other more distant relatives and non-relatives. This evidence support the idea that house hold decision markers allocate resources towards children with whom they have close relationships and discriminate against children whose ties are more distant (Paxson and Ableidinger, 2002). Sometimes orphans become truant because they are responsible for household chores, they are the once doing all heavy labor work such as in the fields, cattle post and general household chores whereas with the children of the household decision maker, school is their first priority.

Programs Assisting Orphan Adolescents in Botswana

There numbers of orphans due to HIV/AIDS increased, this called for government and other stakeholders’ attention. Traditionally, orphaned children in Botswana have been cared for by extended families. However, due to social and economic strain some families are no longer able because orphans increase an alarming rate. The government organizations, non government organization, volunteers and community based programmes took responsibility to take care of the orphans.

Government Programmes

They are 100% government owned example the national orphan programme and masiela trust fund. A National Orphan Programme was established in April 1999 to respond to the immediate needs of orphaned children, and a comprehensive policy for helping AIDS orphans was established under this programme (UNAIDS, 2006). The government currently runs a ‘food basket’ scheme, where a basket of food is provided to orphaned households once a month. Orphans are also provided with school uniforms and are subsidized for transportation fees to get to school. Masiela trust fund was set up by the cabinet to be responsible for the orphans. It works closely with the ministry of local government. Its role is to raise funds which are then allocated to appropriate nongovernmental organizations and community based organizations working with orphans and vulnerable children (Dlamini, 2004).

Community Based Programmes

These are programmes founded by communities and churches. They are funded by local companies, local banks and the government. Examples are Bobirwa trust fund, Kgaitsadi Society and Bana Baketso orphan day care. Most of these programmes care mostly for 3-6 children. Bana Baketso orphan day care has interventions for adolescents. It is based in Molepolole. The school was established in 1998 and works closely with the Keletso counseling and testing centre and also offers spiritual and social counseling. The Bana Ba Keletso day care centre is attended by 334 registered orphans and vulnerable children, ranging in age from 2-18years (Dlamini, 2004). Schooling children (7-18years) are collected after school to attend the centre. They receive a meal and participate in various activities with care givers including: Help with home work; Bereavement and trauma counseling support programmes to help them cope.; Music and gospel sessions to help children cope and develop their spirituality; Drama and swimming at private schools that have partnered with Day care centre; Psychological camps at various venues during holidays, which is also open to adolescents outside the centre. The focus of the camp is to integrate the children socially, to teach them survival skills and life skills to encourage positive attitudes. The camp promotes good, safe behavior to avoid the risk of HIV infection.

The center provides training for income generating activities for adolescents such as leather work and art work and they are assisted finding employment. The care givers are trained in counseling and grief support. They assist the follow up of treatment of HIV/AIDS-positive children at clinics and in Gaborone where they receive their Anti Retroviral therapy treatment (Dlamini, 2004).

Non-Governmental Organization Programs

These are programs that are independent and funded by international companies, individuals and international governments, examples are Masitara foundation, Bill Melinda gates foundation, SOS children’s village and Mpule Kwelagobe foundations.

SOS also has specific objective for adolescents. It is a Children’s Villages which helped children who are orphaned, abandoned or whose families are unable to care for them. They give these children the opportunity to build lasting relationships within an SOS family. Their family approach in the SOS Children’s Village is based on four principles:

Each child needs a mother,

Each child grows up most naturally with brothers and sisters,

Each child grows up in their own house,

Each child grows up within a supportive village environment.

SOS Children began working in Botswana in 1986 when we opened a community in Tlokweng (15 family houses and nursery), Another in Francistown, built in 1998 (15 family houses and an SOS and a nursery) and third village is being built at Serowe (5 family houses and a nursery) (SOS children’s villages, 2010). Children attend the local government schools, all within walking distance, and the younger ones use the SOS Nursery. There is An SOS Vocational Training Centre teaches (16years old) tailoring, welding and carpentry to give them the best possible chance of earning a living when they are ready to leave the village. Tlokweng also has a farm which provides most of the Village’s food requirements as well as further vocational training opportunities (SOS Children’s villages, 2010).

Another programme that is very important is BOFWA, Botswana Family Welfare Association. It was founded in September 1988. BOFWA provides information and services on Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH). This approach appears necessary based on the current statistics of teenage pregnancy, HIV infection and AIDS cases in Botswana. The approach specifically targets young people who are vulnerable to HIV infection due to unprotected sex which also leads to unplanned pregnancy which comes with psychological, social and physical consequences. This programme is essential for orphaned adolescents because it covers sexual and reproductive issues and orphaned adolescent are very vulnerable to such issues adopted on line: http://www.bofwa.bw/focus.html

Evidenced Based Specific Interventions Related To Adolescent Orphans

Rivers and Aggleton (2003) approved that globally as many as 100 million young people under the age of 18 live or work on the streets of urban areas. Many report having exchanged sex for money, goods or protection, injecting drugs and having been raped. In most cases, orphaned adolescents are the ones who are poor, have no proper parental guidance, therefore they are trapped in this bad activities. In such situations explicit intervention is needed to counterbalance the disempowering effects of community environments on susceptible groups like adolescent orphans (Msimang 2001). The following interventions can reduce risk and vulnerability:

• Provision of free, universal education (Loewenson, 2007): Young females with higher educational level are more likely to report practicing abstinence than those with lower educational level (koffi and kawaha, 2008). Education equips orphan adolescent with knowledge that they could be getting from their parents. Also education gives these orphans hopes that one day they will be able to support themselves, so they do not have to exploit their bodies by exchange sex for money.

• Support of teachers to deliver effective programs of HIV-related education, build youth awareness and challenging youth and gender stereotypes (Loewenson, 2007): Teachers have to make students understand that it is important to learn skills and behavior change in this domain as compared to other academic areas where achievement on a test may be important. Teachers can make this distinction by stating to the class why sexual education is so important for them. Stories of adolescents whose lives have been affected in negative ways by pregnancy or STDs (e.g., discussion of true stories, showing videos of true stories) can be very useful. The idea here is to encourage students to value what they are learning as a mechanism for behavior change, rather than focusing on simple knowledge acquisition and memorization.

• Universal access to youth friendly health services for prevention, treatment and care (Loewenson, 2007). Providing reproductive health and HIV/AIDS education and services is critical as orphans are vulnerable to risky sexual behaviors. Staff may need training in order: not to discriminate against youth; to understand that parental consent may keep youth from seeking health care; to realize that young people usually lack the means to pay for services; and to cope with youth’s difficulties in adhering to treatment.

• Social interventions to promote more open forms of communication within and between families, communities and young people (Loewenson, 2007): Supervision by people in the community and parental supervision are possible factors that may prevent risky behaviors of underserved adolescents such as orphans. Community should be more sensitive to support safer sexual behaviors, according to adolescent needs and wishes. Good relationship between care givers and appropriate attitudes of people within the community towards orphans should be encouraged.

Other interventions as adopted from (Loewenson, 2007) include, law reforms and enforcement on gender violence, inheritance and sexual cleansing; legal and counseling services to victims of domestic violence; public and political leadership speaking out against harmful practices; small business loans and production inputs from state and NGOs to households to sustain production; and public works, cash transfers and income support to households caring for orphans.

Chacham (2007) stresses that; supply is only one part of the picture. Demand and uptake issues need to be addressed. This implies making services acceptable and accessible to male and female youth, through entry points that young people will use before they are at risk, and preventing social stigma or victimization for use of services.

Strengths of the orphanage programmes in Botswana

The activities in programmes are child and adolescent focused such as counseling and recreational activities.

There is evidence of youth empowerment in most centers such as camping which provide a useful opportunities for children to acquire skills from care givers (survival skills), artwork activities tailoring, welding and carpentry.

Most of the programmes involve the community although there is room for extending community involvement such as funding from government.

Their main goal is focused on promoting and protecting Orphaned and vulnerable Children in to better adults.

Providing interaction of children with those who are not orphans by allowing non-orphan children in the SOS nursery, adolescent in government schools and camping not exclusive to orphans.

Weakness/ Challenges of the Orphanage Programmes in Botswana

Lack of infrastructure, in Bana ba keletso day care centre, 334 children are taken care of in 2 bed roomed rented house, during our visit, when it rains, all children overcrowd in a small house (Dlamini, 2004).

Lack of finance: inadequate funding as well as the uncertainty of the available funds especially to feed the children. The government brings fixed amount not taking in to consideration price fluctuations.

They are few social workers in the districts, causing delay in cases requiring their immediate attention example, children who are sexually abused.

No evidence for community empowerment programmes to reduce dependence.

There is no feasible orphan policy, care givers and volunteers do whatever they can lay hands on.

Most of these programmes fail to address the sexual and reproductive issues that the adolescents face.

CONCLUSION

Young people are part of the promise for the future, the hope of a next generation. These adolescents need proper upbringing to be future leaders of the country. The programmes are really playing a good role; they are helping the innocent and vulnerable to conquer life challenges as adolescence is a critical stage of life. It’s a stage where most individual life starts to turn over if they choose negative deeds and attitudes

RECOMMENDATIONS

The government should give these programs more resources such as land to engage in poultry and vegetable farming as well as mobile restaurants hence developing entrepreneurial skills in children at early age. This will reduce the financial problems experienced.

More main power such as social workers should be available in most of the time, adolescent need more advices and professional counseling, so that the programme cannot rely only on lay counselors.

Projects working with orphaned adolescents should address the developmental needs of this age group. Adolescents have particular developmental needs that can be much more challenging without parents. Programs generally are not addressing the psychosocial, sexuality and reproductive health, social support, and livelihood needs of adolescents who are orphans. In addition, programs need to realize that age and sex differences are important. Developmental needs of younger and older adolescents vary. Girls and boys may also have different needs.

Oppositional Defiant Disorder is classified in the DSM-IV-TR as a disruptive behavior disorder. An Oppositional Defiant Disorder child displays an ongoing pattern of uncooperative, defiant, aggressive, and disobedient behavior toward authority figures. Children with Oppositional Defiant Disorder are usually in constant trouble at school, have difficulty making or keeping friends, do not follow adults’ requests, blames others for their mistakes, are easily annoyed, and loses their temper at the drop of a hat. In the United States Oppositional Defiant Disorder is thought to affect about six percent of all children; with the majority of them coming from families in the lower class. One study stated that about eight percent of children from low-income families were diagnosed with Oppositional Defiant Disorder. The disorder is often observed by the time a child is six years old but no later than a child’s preteen years. With this disorder boys also tend to be diagnosed more often than girls in the preteen years. However, it is equally common in males and females by adolescence. Recently, it has been discovered that girls may show the symptoms of Oppositional Defiant Disorder differently than boys. Girls with this disorder may show their ferociousness through words rather than actions and in other indirect ways. For example, girls with Oppositional Defiant Disorder are quicker to lie and to be uncooperative; while boys are more likely to lose their temper and argue with adults. It has also been estimated that about one-third of the children who have this disorder also have Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Children who have Oppositional Defiant Disorder are often diagnosed with anxiety or depression as well.

Diagnosis

Part of childhood is arguing with your parents or defying authority from time to time, especially when the child is tired, hungry, or upset. Some of the behaviors associated with Oppositional Defiant Disorder can also occur because the child is undergoing a transition, is under stress, or is in the midst of a crisis. This makes the behavioral symptoms of Oppositional Defiant Disorder sometimes difficult for parents to distinguish from the stress-related behaviors. In order for a child to be diagnosed with Oppositional Defiant Disorder they have to be extremely negative, hostile, and defiant in a constant pattern for at least 6 months. This behavior also needs to be excessive compared to what is typical for a child at that age and disruptive to the family, school environments and usually directed toward an authority figure. An example of an authority figure would be parents, teachers, principal, or coach. The child also has to exhibit during these six months four or more of the following behavioral symptoms that are associated with Oppositional Defiant Disorder; frequent temper tantrums, excessive arguing with adults, aggressively refusing to comply with requests and rules, often questioning the rules, deliberately annoying and upsetting others, often touchy or annoyed by others, blaming others for their mistakes, frequent outbursts of anger and resentment, or often spiteful or vindictive. Also, the disruption must cause significant amount of damage to the child’s academic, occupational or social functioning and cannot occur only during a Psychotic or Mood Disorder episode. Lastly, the child cannot be diagnosed with Oppositional Defiant Disorder if they meet criteria for Conduct Disorder, if the individual is eighteen years of age or older or meet criteria for Antisocial Personality Disorder.

Case Study

My best friend has a son with Oppositional Defiant Disorder. His name is Radon. Radon is ten years old and attends the fifth grade. Radon’s day usually starts out with arguing about what he can and cannot bring to school. His mother and his teacher have now made out a written list of what these things are. Radon was bringing a computer to school and telling his teacher that his mother said it was alright. At first his teacher wondered about this, but Radon seemed so believable. Then Radon brought a little knife. That led to a real understanding between the teacher and Radon’s mother.

Radon does not go to school on the bus. He gets teased and then retaliates immediately. Since it is impossible to supervise bus rides adequately, his parents and the school gave up and they drive him to school. It is still hard to get him there on time. As the time to leave approaches, he gets slower and slower. Now it is not quite as bad because for every minute he is late he loses a dime from his daily allowance. Once at school, he usually gets into a little pushing with the other kids in those few minutes between his mother’s eyes and the teacher’s. The class work does not go that badly unless he has an episode as his mother put it. Then he will flip desks, swear at the teacher, tear up his work and refuse to do anything for the rest of the day. The reasons for his outbursts seem so trivial, but to him they are the end of the world. He is not allowed to go to the bathroom by himself and at times this bothers him so he flips his desk. He was told to stop tapping his pencil, so he swore at the teacher. These types of things happen throughout the day according to his mother.

Recess is still the hardest time for Radon. He tells everyone that he has lots of friends, but his mother says that if you watch what goes on in the lunch room or on the playground; it is hard to figure out who they are. Some kids avoid him, but most would give him a chance if he wasn’t so bossy. The playground supervisor tries to get him involved in a soccer game every day. He isn’t bad at it, but he will not pass the ball, so no one really wants him on his team.

After school is the time that make his mom seriously consider foster care. The home work battle is horrible. He refuses to do work for an hour, then complains, break pencils, and irritate her. This drags thirty minutes of work out to two hours. So, now she hires a tutor. He doesn’t try all of this on the tutor, at least so far. With no home work, he is easier to take. But he still wants to do something with her every minute. Each day he asks her to help him with a model or play a game at about 4:30. Each day she tells him she cannot right now as she is making supper. Each day he screams out that she doesn’t ever do anything with him, slams the door, and goes in the other room and usually turns the TV on very loud. She comes up, tells him to turn it down three times. He doesn’t and is sent to his room. After supper Radon’s dad takes over and they play some games together and usually it goes fine for about an hour. Then it usually ended in screaming. He is then sent to bed and the day starts all over. Since I talked to Radon’s mother about him he has had a very difficult time at school. He is now being home tutored by the after school tutor that he had before. The school has found him to be a threat to the staff and other children. The incidents that lead to this were that he destroyed the principal’s office, threated to kill two staff members, and three children. The mom does not want him put into a school for children with behavioral disorders as she feels it will just make him worse. Radon is now seeing three different people to help with his disorder. One is a social worker, one is a psychiatrist and the other is an anger management specialist. The school continues to work with her and if all goes well he will be transitioned back into the school next year. She still has problems with him at home.

Causes

There are many different theories that try to explain Oppositional Defiant Disorder. There is the psychodynamic theory that interprets the aggressive and defiant behavior as an indication of a deeply-seated feeling of lack of love from the parents, the inability to trust and an absence of understanding. The behavioral theory suggests that Oppositional Defiant Disorder is caused by a dysfunctional family life, lack of parenting and the repeated giving into demands that are reinforced when bad behavior occurs. The biological theory suggests that these behavioral problems in children could be caused by impairments to certain areas of the brain. There is also a link between the amount of certain chemicals in the brain and Oppositional Defiant Disorder. The biological theory suggests that if these chemicals are out of balance, the brain is then not working properly. Then the messages sent may not make it through the brain correctly, leading to symptoms of Oppositional Defiant Disorder. Lastly, cognitive theories state that the child feels hostility in their lives and in turn respond to other with their own hostility.

Treatments

The first step is to assess the danger the children pose to themselves or others and evaluate the impact that the environment may be having on their continued development. It is important to also evaluate the ability of the child parents to adequately care for them. In some cases, crisis care or residential treatment may need to consider. Treatment for children and adolescents should include multiple avenues. Individual therapy, parent intervention, school intervention, and community based interventions should all be considered. While there are several treatments available to help they have not developed a medication to treat this disorder. There are medications researchers say will help with the symptoms but no properly executed study has been completed. A treatment that is available however, would be Psychotherapy. This is a type of counseling that is aimed at helping the children develop more effective coping and problem-solving skills. There is also family therapy, which may be used to help improve family interactions and communication among family members, as well as parent management training. This teaches parents ways to positively alter their child’s behavior. Lastly, there are behavior management plans. These are an agreement between parents and children that give rewards for positive behaviors and consequences for negative behaviors.

The treatments for Oppositional Defiant Disorder are usually a long-term commitment. It may take a year or more of treatment to see noticeable improvement. It is important for families to continue with treatment even if they see no immediate improvement. If Oppositional Defiant Disorder is not treated or if treatment is abandoned, the child is more likely to develop conduct disorder. The risk of developing conduct disorder is lower in children who are only mildly defiant. It is higher in children who are more defiant and in children who also have Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. In adults, conduct disorder is called antisocial personality disorder. Children who have untreated Oppositional Defiant Disorder are also at risk for developing passive-aggressive behaviors as adults. Persons with passive-aggressive characteristics tend to see themselves as victims and blame others for their problems.

The following research is to be related to outdoor play and its benefits for children and why outdoor play is not what it used to be. Research done on children stated that it is a myth that children enjoy staying indoors playing computer games and indoor games, a greater number of children prefer to play outside eighty eight per cent would prefer to play at the beach or by a river, seventy nine per cent like to play in the park, seventy nine per cent enjoy riding their bike and seventy six children playing ball games. However parents would prefer that their child stays indoors as they feel it is safer one in four would rather their child play on the computer than climb trees and one in five computer- based games play than letting their children play on fields. (Play England 2011) Children missing out on the great outdoors http://www.playengland.org.

Methodology

To help with this research project the literature research will be conducted on secondary research from books and articles on the subject and through the internet. It will also examine a range of quantitative and qualitative research.

Literature review

Research by the Department of the Environment (1973) on children that play outdoors and in the local area of where they live have declined over the past thirty years, a report done on outdoor play in 1973 showed that seventy five per cent of children played in the street as this was found to be the most popular. The study showed that children were more involved in physical activities like walking, running, made their own go-karts and ball games (Department of the Environment 1973).

Another Study that was done by Play Board in 1995 had a similar outcome regarding children’s play this was done on two samples of over eight hundred children aged five to fourteen, these children were asked where they would play if they were not at home twenty four per cent of children said playing in the street, eighteen per cent said the play park and seventeen per cent said the garden (Parkinson 1985)

Information obtained from a survey done in 2005 stated that only fifteen per cent of children aged between five and fifteen play outside in the street this is due to the quantity of obstacles put in their way of outdoor play (Department of transport 2006). Transport has a big influence on how children play. An ESRC sponsored study in 2000 showed that children thought that traffic is one of the biggest dangers of outdoor play along with gangs, bullies, and strangers (Matthews and Limb 2000).

Research done by Savlone and playengland (2011) showed that most parents ventured outdoors as a child, however they now have concerns their children do not have the same opportunities as they did then. Research done with children showed that forty two per cent of children said that they have never made a daisy chain; thirty per cent of children have not attempted to climb trees. Children are aware of barriers to outdoor play as their parents are telling them to keep safe a report done by Young Voice and The Children’s Society in preparation for Playday 2003 stated that parents are always warning their children of ‘stranger danger’ (Stockdale,Katz and Brook 2003a)

Public attitudes toward children spending more time playing outdoors is positive and believe this as being an important part of a child’s life it has social benefits play with other children has an impact on how children relate to one another, from being part of a group or part of the local community (Casey 2010)

“In the street, particularly in the nooks and crannies of the public space not under the watchful gaze of adults, children may thus begin forming a public identity and establish their own selfhood and independence”(Spilsbury 2005, p 81).

For years research findings has shown the importance of outdoor play and children’s well- being this was recognised in the 1960s when Mead (1966) stated that the neighbourhoods give children the opportunity to discover their environment and learn life lessons. Worpole and Knox (2007) believed that play is important for children; it can build some good friendships and understand the rules of social life. Outdoor play can benefit children in natural surroundings; free play and exposure to nature are vastly recognised as part of a child’s healthy development (Moore and Cosco 2009).

Studies of research show that daily connections with exposures to the outdoors can improve fitness attention and can lower sickness rates it is also believed that this can give children a sense of freedom. Children that play outdoors learn to navigate their immediate environment and build their self-confidence (Open university 2011). Those children that do not play outdoors will have less confidence and will unlikely be involved in the community (Gleave 2010). When children play out in the natural environment they are likely to enjoy nature as they grow up.

Adrian Voce, Co-Director of Play England Said:

“Most parents know that children are curious about, and love to play outdoors. This is a deeply instinctive part of human nature and a vital part of healthy childhoods. We need to ensure that all children can access local green spaces to play, enabling them to have everyday adventures outside. To do this we need to support parents to help them feel confident to let children play out.” (Adrian Voce, Co-Director of Play England) Children missing out on the great outdoors (wwwplayengland.org.uk).

A UK survey found that ninety one per cent of adults understood the importance of outdoor play, sixty per cent said that they were worried about the safety of their children play in public places (Mc Neish & Roberts, cited in Valentine & McKenrick,1997).

Beunderman (2010) found evidence that child learn life skills through outdoor play in their communities for example looking out for each other, asking for help. It is argued that having these abilities can offer them a positive outlook on the community gaining trust, feeling welcome and getting to know people in the community and being able to respect and have better relationships with other adults.

According to the working paper by Lester and Russell (2010) on the importance of play:

“Adults should be aware of the importance of play and take action to promote and protect the conditions that support it. The guiding principle is that any intervention to promote play acknowledges its characteristics and allows sufficient flexibility, unpredictability and security for children to play freely.”

(Lester and Russell 2010: 46)

Bishop (2012) stated that 25 per cent of toddlers are lacking vitamin D. The importance of outdoor play is essential for vitamin D as this comes from the sun and is one of the most important vitamins you need for your immune system and bones. Bristol University exposed some new research from the children of the nineties study recording the health of fourteen thousand five hundred children from birth in the 1990s, it shows that the connection among low levels of vitamin D and depression this happens in childhood so children that play outdoor reduce the risk of getting vitamin D deficiency and have a healthy body

“If you spend your time playing Nintendo or computer games instead of running about outside, riding in a car instead of on a bike, taking the tube / bus instead of walking through the park, thinking you look cool always wearing dark glasses or if you have dark skin to genetically protect you from a hot equatorial sun and you live in northern Europe or north America then you are going to benefit from a vitamin D supplement. A vitamin D deficiency leaves you with a greater risk of a number of different diseases not just bone problems such as rickets.” (Yvonne Bishop-Weston 2012)

Conclusion

It is evident that there is a shortage of outdoor space for children to play with the ever increase of built up areas. Fewer play parks and not enough affordable places for parents to take children so that they can have the freedom to be able playing outdoors. It is also evident that children achieve much better when they are playing outdoors such as physical development, social skills, problem solving and creativity. (http://www.npt.gov.uk/default.aspx?page=1639).

References

Casey, T (2010) Inclusive Play: Practical strategies for children from birth to eight. London: Sage.

Beunderman, J (2010) People Make Play: The impact of staffed play provision on children, families and communities. London: Play England.

Department of the Environment. (1973). Children at Play: Design

Bulletin 27. London: HMSO.

Department for Transport (2006). National Travel Survey 2005.

Transport Statistics.

www.dft.gov.uk

Gleave, J (2010) Community Play: A literature review. London: Play England. Available online at: http://www.playday.org.uk/PDF/Community-play-a-literature-review.pdf

(Accessed Jan. 2013).

Lester, S and Russell, W (2010) Children’s right to play: An examination of the importance of play in the lives of children worldwide. Working Paper No. 57, The Hague, The Netherland: Bernard van Leer Foundation

Matthews, H. and Limb, M. (2000). Exploring the ‘fourth environment’:

young people’s use of place and views on their environment. Stirling:

University of Stirling. ESRC.

Mead, M (1966) ‘Neighbourhood and human needs’, Ekistics, 21, 124-126, in Blakely, K S (1994) ‘Parents’ Conceptions of Social Danger to Children in the Urban Environment’, Children’s Environment, 1, 1, 16-25.

Moore, R and Cosco, N (2009) ‘The re-emerging importance of outdoor play in nature’, Playrights Magazine, 1, 4-6.

Parkinson, C. E. (1985). Where Children Play: an analysis of interviews

about where children aged 5 14 normally play and their preferences for

out of school activities. Play Board.

Open University (2011) Play, learning and the brain. Available online at: http://openlearn.open.ac.uk/mod/oucontent/view.php?id=397465&printable=1

(Accessed Jan. 2013).

Spilsbury, JC (2005) ‘We Don’t Really Get to Go Out in the Front Yard’: Children’s home range and neighbourhood violence’, Children’s Geographies, 3, 1, 79-99.

Stockdale,D. Katz,A.and Brook,L (2003a) You can’t keep me in. London: The Children’s Society, Young Voice

Voce, A. (2013). Co-Director of Play England (2013) Children missing out on the great outdoors http://www.playengland.org.uk/news/2011/08/children-missing-out-on-the-great-outdoors.aspx (Accessed Jan. 2013)

Yvonne Bishop-Weston (2012)

http://nutrition-news.blogspot.co.uk/2012/01/uk-children-and-adults-lack-vitamin-d.html

(Accessed Jan 2013)

Worpole, K and Knox, K (2007) The Social Value of Public Spaces. York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation

One-to-one communication occurs when one person speaks with or writes to another individual. This happens when a care professional meets with a person who has health worries or personal concerns, such as during a doctor to patient appointment for example. One-to-one communication also occurs when care professionals meet with and talk to each other or with partners, relatives or friends of people receiving care.

Communication in one-to-one situations is most helpful when both people are relaxed and are able to take turns at talking and listening. Effective communicators are good at:

Beginning the one-to-one interaction with a friendly, relaxed greeting

Focusing on the objective of the interaction

Ending the interaction in a helpful and positive way.

Figure Examples of one-to-one communication situationsEffective communication and interaction take part in an important role in the work of all health and social care professionals. For example, care professionals need to be able to use a variety of communication skills in order to: work with people of different ages and diverse backgrounds; respond appropriately to the variety of care related problems and individual needs; enable people to feel relaxed and secure enough to talk openly; establish trusting relationships with colleagues and service users; obtain clear and accurate information about a person’s problems or concerns; give others information about care related issues in a clear and confident way.

In a doctors’ surgery a GP or practice nurse may use their communication and interaction skills to find out about the symptoms of a service users health problems or may have given you advice or guidance on some part of their health behaviour or lifestyle. Building a good rapport with a service user, shows them respect, listening attentively and speaking clearly in language that they can understand would contribute to the effectiveness of the communication.

Group Communication

Group communication is slightly different to one-to-one communication. There is often more going on in a group, with a number of different people trying to speak to get their point across and their voice heard. Taking turns can be more difficult and relationships and power issues between group members can also be more complicated than in one-to-one contexts.

As a communication context, groups can have various benefits for participants including:

Group communication can be an effective way of sharing responsibilities

Groups can improve decision making and problem solving because they get the information and skills of a number of people

Groups can improve peoples’ self-esteem and social skills

Group communication can also limit the effectiveness of communication if:

The power in a group is held by a single person

The group loses sight of its main goal or purpose

People find it hard to speak and contribute effectively. This can lead to badly thought out decisions being made.

Styles of Communication

There are two styles of communication: formal and informal. Formal communication is referred to as official or correct forms of communication. Formal communication occurs, for example, when someone speaks or writes in a professional way because they are representing their care organisation or are contacting an organisation officially.

Informal communication doesn’t keep to the formal rules of communication. Informal communication is more relaxed and personal than formal communication. People use informal communication when they speak with or write to their relatives or friends. When people communicate in an informal way, they are less concerned about the ‘correct’ use of language. This doesn’t necessarily mean that informal communication is less effective than formal communication.

Communication between Colleagues

Care professionals communicate with colleagues in numerous one-to-one and group contexts every day. Effective communication between colleagues needs: Personal and professional respect for others; trust in the values and decisions of colleagues; good verbal listening skills.

Care professionals can communicate formally and informally with colleagues. Effective communication enables people to work more efficiently and to work together with each other in groups.

Communication between Professionals and Service Users

Care professionals communicate with service users frequently in a variety of ways. These include formal meetings and appointments to assess and diagnose a person’s health problems, in follow-up appointments to review a person’s progress or recovery, in informal conversations during activity sessions and in short communication in a corridor or car park.

To communicate effectively, care professionals need to use language that isn’t too technical or based on jargon. This use of language can frustrate service users because they may not know what the technical terms mean and they feel that their concerns aren’t being answered to in a suitable way. Effective communication enables service users to feel more supported.

Communication with Other Professionals

Care professionals need to be able to communicate effectively with colleagues from a variety of different care professions. For example, a multi-professional mental health team might include mental health nurses, social workers, occupational therapists, psychologists and psychiatrics. Each of these care professionals has particular career training and a variety of specialist skills. Care professionals of this group will need to be able to use their one-to-one and group communication skills adaptably so that they can talk to and share ideas with their colleagues in ways that benefit people in their care.

Care professionals in multi-professional groups may communicate in both formal and informal contexts. When other care professionals get to know each other well, they may use informal language at times. However, if a care professional has to communicate between different care organisations, they may communicate more formally. Formal communication may be used to ensure that care professionals and organisations are clear about each other’s responsibilities.

Forms of Communication

Care professionals use different forms of communication when communicating with colleagues, other professionals and service users. These include and non-verbal methods of communication. Care professionals use both of these forms of communication when they give or receive information about the care being provided, provide emotional support, and when carrying out an assessment of care needs.

Verbal Communication

Verbal communication occurs when one person speaks and another person listens. Care professionals need a variety of verbal communication skills to:

Respond to questions

Contribute to team meetings

Provide support to others

Deal with problems and complaints

Find out about a service user’s problems or needs.

Issues that care professionals need to consider when communicating verbally include:

The use of jargon and technical terms

Dialect

Slang

The preferred language and support needs of the person or group they are communicating with.

Verbal communication is word based, so it can involve written or spoken language. Effective verbal communication occurs when a person speaks or writes and at least one other person listens to or reads and understands the message.

A number of features of speech can affect the effectiveness of verbal communication. These features include the pitch, tone, speed, volume and clarity of a person’s voices. For example, it isn’t a good idea to sound aggressive, talk really fast or mumble when having a conversation with someone. A care professional’s speech should be clear, understandable and paced to suit the listener. This enables the listener to hear and fully understand what is being said.

Non-Verbal Communication

Figure : Forms of Non-Verbal CommunicationNon-verbal communication is a form of communication that doesn’t use words. We communicate non-verbally through body language, art, drama, music and specialist techniques such as signing. Care professionals need to be aware of how both they and other people use non-verbal communication as this can have an impact on the effectiveness of communication.

Facial Expression

Facial expressions involve movements of the face that shows a person’s feelings. When people read at a person’s facial expression they look at their:

Eyes to see if the pupils are dilated or contracted.

Skin colour to see if the person is blushing or sweating.

Mouth to see if the person is smiling or frowning.

Care professionals look at people’s facial expressions to assess a person’s mood and to see their response to a situation for example, when a service user is given results of medical tests.

Touch

Touch involves physically touching or holding a person. Touch is a way of communicating reassurance and empathy in care situations. Care professionals are usually allowed and expected to touch others as part of their work. For example, care workers can use touch as a way of communicating reassurance, showing concern and to carry out care procedures.

Posture

A person’s posture can communicate information about their attitude and feelings. For example, somebody who is sitting or standing in a very upright, firm way may be seen as being tense or having a serious attitude. Closed postures, when a person has their arms or legs crossed, are usually seen as being defensive or anxious. Open postures are when a person has their arms by their sides and where they lean slightly forward, this indicates that the person is comfortable and relaxed.

Care professionals can use their understanding of various postures to read a person’s mood and feelings. This allows the care professional to collect useful information during assessments and in on-to-one counselling sessions.

Proximity

Proximity refers to the physical closeness, personal distance or personal space between people during interactions. The amount of personal space that a person requires during an interaction sometimes depends on their cultural background, upbringing and the type of relationship that they have with the other person. For example, people from Western Europe don’t tend to touch others as much as people from the Mediterranean. This is because people from Western Europe prefer formal touching, such as handshakes, unless they know the other person very well.

Active Listening

Active listening involves paying attention to a person’s verbal and non-verbal communication and then reflecting back the important messages. Active listening may involve:

Summarising what the person has said at different times

Interpreting what they have been saying in your own words to clarify that you have understood them correctly.

Language Needs and Preferences

Care professionals must be able to adapt to the communication and language needs and preferences of others. This includes people who are unable to use spoken language and people who have sensory impairments that limit their communication abilities.

Sign Language

People who have hearing impairments sometimes communicate through the use of specialist forms of non-verbal signing. Sign languages are often used in settings where service users have limited ability to use verbal language. There are various sign language methods including sign language and Makaton. It is useful for care professionals to develop signing skills if some service users in their care communicate in this way.

Braile

Braile is a system of writing for visually impaired people in which patterns of raised dots represent letters and numbers, these raised dots are ‘read’ by the use of touch. People who have a visual impairment that stops them from reading handwritten or printed text use braile.

Use of Signs, Symbols and Images

Signs, symbols and pictures are image created ways of communicating small amounts of information in a direct way without using words. For example, most people are able to understand the difference between the symbols for male and female toilets. Many care organisations, such as hospitals, use a number of signs to inform and direct people to various parts of a building. Signs, symbols and images that are used for communication have to have a clear and easy to understand meaning to be effective in communicating information.

Human Aids

Human aids include people who work as:

Interpreters, who listen to a person speak in one language and then communicate what they have said to a second person in a different language.

Translators, translate what is written in one language into a second language.

Signers who use forms of sign language to communicate what has been said or written into a sign language.

Technological Aids

Technological aids, such as electronic communicators and hearing aids are designed to help people who have difficulty communicating. Many people now use technology in the form of mobile phones and computers to communicate with others.